Rogue's Little Sister?
by LittlRogue
Summary: A new mutant is discovered in Alabama with the same appearances and abilities as Rogue, could this be her little sister? Yes, an OC, but don't let that dissuade you! I've gotten compliments before, so its not horrible!
1. Chapter 1

**Fwee!! I don't own X-Men, so don't sue me! Sides, i have no $$ anyway... Ah, to all those who may be wondering, this is a rewrite of my old story. I deleted its stupidness and went more in dept with the character. Anyways... review if you like... review if you don't like! I like the ideas, just be nice! Oook... now that we got all that down... to the story!!**

Mary Dawson groaned as her alarm woke her from her sleep. Her dreams were her only refuge these days. There, she was free from her parents, the kids from school, her life in general. She reached over and clicked off the screeching alarm, hoping it didn't wake her mother and father. She rolled out of bed quietly and stood in front of the full-length mirror. Her white and dark brown hair was askew and sticking up at odd angles. She ran her fingers through her two-toned hair, trying to flatten it a bit. She had recently gotten her white hair cut into bangs, but didn't like it too much and was now letting her hair grow out again. _Needs to be a bit longer. _She realized as she pulled her below-the-shoulder-length hair back into a ponytail and the white pulled free and fell to the sides of her face to a bit below her ears. _Least when I wear it up today it'll cover my eye for the most part._ Mary hoped as she noticed her eye was still a blackish color. Her father, in one of his drunken and angry stupors, had beaten her again a few nights ago.

After 15 years, Mary had gotten pretty good at dodging him and staying put in her room when he was like that. But two nights ago, he had stormed into her room and attacked her. She vaguely remembered him mumbling something about her being a 'disappointment, a fucking bitch with no purpose.' And him again declaring that it was a mistake for he and his wife to take Mary in when they had found her on their doorstep 15 years ago. The teen didn't say a word in response; instead she tried to defend herself without seeming like it. If Steve Dawson knew she was trying to protect herself, he would just beat her harder. Consequently, Mary had passed out and was left in her room by her father. Her mother, Sarah Dawson, had the same feelings for their adopted daughter, but wasn't as violent about it. Neither of the two loved her, and Mary had learned to accept it, even though subconsciously she wished they would at least pretend. She also had wondered why they had even adopted her if they hated her so much.

Sighing, she pulled her hair back down and headed for the shower. Minutes later she emerged from the bathroom, tiptoed back to her room and got dressed. "_Something to offset the eye..."_ She quickly found her red top with black ripped sleeves, blue jeans with slashes in the knees, and favorite black Sketchers. After checking herself over in the mirror, she decided to take enough money for lunch, grab her bag and slip out quietly to her friend's house before her parents awoke.

**Knock-knock**

A somewhat groggy Charlie Forest answered the door. "Hey Mary." He greeted with a tired smile. "Hey Mr. Forest... is Amy up yet?" Mary asked hopefully as she stepped inside. "Umm..." Charlie started, scratching his head and yawning. "Yeah sweetheart, or at least she should be." Elizabeth Forest greeted as she walked around the corner. "Thanks Mrs. Forest." Mary chuckled as she watched Charlie stumble back to the kitchen no doubt for his coffee. "So how's it been goin' lately?" Elizabeth questioned as she ushered Mary to the table for a quick breakfast. "Pretty good." Mary lied, brushing her white hair behind her ears. Elizabeth's ice blue eyes quickly spotted Mary's bruised face and the woman raised her brow. "It's nothing." The two-tone spoke up quickly as she brushed her hair back into her face. The brunette reached out her hand to brush away the white locks, and Mary winced away on reflex.

"Its never just nothing." The older woman corrected as she reached again slowly and tucked the hair behind her ears. "Mary... I know you're parents are somewhat... violent people. But they can't hit you, yah hear me? Next that happens, you call us immediately." Elizabeth ordered sternly but softly and Mary nodded, her eyes avoiding the other woman's. There was a pause between the two before Mrs. Forest pulled the still quiet teen into a hug. She chuckled a bit as she realized Mary would have to stand on her toes; it wasn't that Elizabeth was tall; the younger girl was just short. Mary Dawson was 5'1 to be exact. "Go on Shorty, get Amy up before y'all are late." The brunette teased as she released Mary from the hug. "I'm not that short." She mumbled before walking down the hallway. "Yes you are!" Elizabeth's voice called behind her.

Mary pushed open Amy's door and chuckled. Her best friend had apparently fallen back asleep at the foot of her bed. The two-tone bent down and stared at Amy, taking in her features. Amy had lighter skin than most in Alabama, and neither one of her parent's could figure out why. She had straight dark brown hair that fell to the middle of her back, and had recently put red streaks in it. Her eyes fluttered a bit, but she didn't wake. In that instance, Mary glimpsed Amy's startling gray-blue eyes. Mary's own deep brown eyes traced their way to her friend's PJs and she began to giggle a bit; Amy was wearing her favorite Winnie the Pooh T-shirt that would completely destroy that tough girl image she had built up since Freshman year. "Come on Sleeping Beauty." Mary ordered as she nudged the sleeping girl slightly. The response was not one she wanted; Amy did nothing but mumble and roll over.

"Ok..." Mary shook her head; she knew it was nearly impossible to wake Amy Forest in the morning. Deciding in favor of extreme measures, Mary walked around to the other side of the bed, grabbed the mattress and lifted it up as high as she could. **Thud** "Holy crap!" Came a muffled cry as Amy face planted on the floor, her blankets and pillows burying her. "Awake yet?" Mary chuckled as the taller girl stood and glared. "Yes. Very." She replied crossly as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes. "Well, I hope so, cause we have to leave for school in about 30 minutes." Mary pointed out. Amy's eyes widened in surprise. She growled a bit and ran for the shower, determined to speed it along.

About 20 minutes later, Amy emerged from her bedroom fully dressed and ready to leave. "So she's alive." Charlie joked as his daughter yawned and flopped down in a chair. "Mornin' Dad." She mumbled in response. "Oh, girls, did you see the fliers for the school carnival tonight?" Elizabeth questioned as she tossed an apple to Amy. "That thing? Gah, I wouldn't be caught dead there, it's going to be nothing but jocks and cheerleaders... the entire popular crowd." Amy explained in disgust. "Well what's wrong with them?" Charlie asked curiously. "Well one, they are too superficial for my liking." Mary started. "Two, they make fun of our hair." Amy cut in quickly. "Three, they pretty much don't like us period." Mary finished. There was a pause, in which Elizabeth looked between Mary and her daughter. "Ok... have y'all rehearsed that or something?" She asked them. The two sophomores shrugged. "Ok... don't go then. I just thought y'all might enjoy it." Charlie spoke up as he ran his hand through his sandy-brown hair.

Mary smiled and checked the clock on the wall. "Whoa... we need to get. Thanks for breakfast Mrs. Forest!" She called as she and Amy ran for the door.

"Whew... and why aren't they on track?" Charlie questioned as the front door slammed. "Because then they would be part of the popular crowd." Elizabeth snorted as she cleaned up plates. She didn't receive a response, and she turned her head expectantly and found Charlie digging at his fingernails. "What?" She asked curiously. "Well I was a part of the popular crowd." He mumbled defensively. Elizabeth snickered and tossed the drying cloth at him.


	2. Chapter 2

Mary and Amy shuffled through the school doors 10 minutes before class. "We really need a car." Amy pointed out as she put her red and black hair into a ponytail. "Neither of us can drive you idiot." Mary snorted as she opened her locker and tossed a few books inside. "Ok... sarcasm is not appreciated this early in the morning." The older girl replied, leaning against the lockers. "But I'm sarcastic... it's what I do." Mary replied as they started for homeroom.

Halfway there, the two hit traffic of other kids rushing to their lockers. "Watch it loser!" Tommy Warren, the football captain, snapped as he shoved a freshman out of his path. Mary's upper lip curled in disgust as the kid was thrown into the lockers. "That-." She began. "Mary." Amy said warningly. Mary shrugged Amy's hand off of her shoulder and shifted her path a few feet so she was directly in front of the jock. "Move you two-toned loser." Tommy ordered. "Sure thing Tom." Mary smirked as she slid over, but kept her foot in place. The captain was too busy thinking the world was at his feet to see the obstacle, and tripped right over it. Seconds later he fell on his face, causing the entire hallway to erupt with laughter. In an instance, he was up and had grabbed her shoulders. "You little bitch." He seethed, his grip tightening. "Ouch... that hit a nerve." Mary retorted, glaring up at the football star. His lips thinned, and he was about to react when a teacher walked up the hallway. Tommy's grip quickly loosened, and he grabbed his bag and started off.

_Coward. _Mary chuckled as she reached for her bag. "Ms. Dawson?" Mrs. Callaway called. Mary winced; Mrs. Callaway was not necessarily her favorite teacher. "Yes ma'am?" She greeted as she turned. "I was wondering if you could be able to be ticket taker tonight at the carnival. Jeff is sick and it's an emergency." She requested. "Oh, I don't-." Mary began, but didn't finish. "Ok wonderful! I'll expect you to be there at 7, it's over at 10." Mrs. Callaway cut in cheerfully as she patted Mary on the shoulder and walked off. "And this is why I'm not fond of Callaway." Amy snickered as she walked up to the still stunned Mary. "I can't believe her!" Mary exclaimed as she kicked the locker. "Want me to hang with you?" Amy offered. The white and brown-headed girl almost jumped with joy, but then remembered that Amy didn't want to go even more than she did. "Nah... it's fine... I'll just catch up with you later." Mary sighed as Amy slung her arm over her shoulder and they started for class.

The rest of the day passed without much incident. Mary had ducked away from Tommy and his thugs who had been looking for her and was now sitting in the old abandoned Janitor's Room. Last year, Eddy the janitor had complained that closet had been too far away from the main accident areas and after much protesting against it, the school had a new one built a few halls down. This one had since been abandoned, everything taken except a few crates. Mary sighed as the 60-watt bulb swung slightly, casting shadows on the gray walls. She leaned against the wall and picked up where she left off in her book.

Suddenly, she heard a noise and her head snapped up and she focused on the door handle; it was turning. It creaked open, and Mary took in a short gasp; if it was Tommy, she was trapped. "Hey, you loser... you skipped Math." Amy scolded as she peeked her head in. Mary let out a deep sigh of relief and shook her head. "Oh no... whatever shall I do?" She cried dramatically as she put her head in her hands. "I don't know... I really don't know." Amy sympathized as she walked in and sat on a crate. "Well it's time to go home anyway... ready to get outta here?" She asked, pulling the door shut. "Gimme some time... I don't want to catch up with Tommy and I don't wanna go home just yet anyway." Mary mumbled as she folded the corner of her page down and tossed the book aside.

"Mary..." Amy began, but paused as she looked at her friend. "What?" Mary asked defensively. "Your eye." The paler girl brought up. Mary shrugged her shoulders and turned her attention to the still light bulb. "No... it's a big deal. Why don't you talk to someone?" Amy pushed. Mary paused in thought, and Amy could see her eyes deepen, as if she was searching for the right answer. "Because its no big deal." She answered softly. "No big deal?" She responded shrilly. "Mary... it is and you know it." Amy chastised. "Well so what?" Mary snapped, but held her hand over Amy's mouth so she could continue. "I'm **adopted**. If I tell the police, they would snatch me up so fast my two-toned head would spin. I don't have any other family. I would be shipped off to another foster home and away from the people I care about here. So I bear this shit cause I know I'll handle myself." She finished as she stood and started for the door.

Amy sat there, staring into space and totally shocked. She regained her senses and stood with her shorter friend. "One day you may not be able to handle yourself, and what'll happen then?" Amy challenged. Mary paused with her hand on the doorknob. "We'll just have to see won't we?" She answered, quickly turning the knob and storming out. Amy Forest stood there shaking her head in the abandoned janitor's closet. "I hope we won't." She called softly, knowing Mary wouldn't hear her.


	3. Chapter 3

Mary scowled as she checked her watch. _8:30...someone kill me now._ She begged as she banged her head on the table. The two-tone had been sitting here the past hour and a half, taking money for tickets of those who had actually come to the school fare. Mostly cheerleaders and jocks, but every once in a while some poser would show up and tag along with those he thought would make him popular.

Fortunately for her, she had taken a break when she saw Tommy and his thugs start for the ticket stand. As soon as they had walked past the table, Mary had emerged from the bathroom and reclaimed her position as ticket-slave.

"Hey Dawson!" A voice called from behind her. Mary winced but didn't turn; she knew exactly who it was. Tommy. She sighed and spun around slowly, her brown and white hair falling into her face. "Aww...poor baby stuck as ticket-taker?" He called, his loud tone calling people's attention. "How'd you get roped into this anyway? Shouldn't you be at home being beaten by your lame-ass dad? Or wait... maybe he's going to make a public appearance for once and beat you here." He snorted, his smile smug.

Mary stood so quickly her chair toppled over and she made her way slowly to the football captain, her eyes boring holes into his. The crowd parted for her as she reached him, and she glared up at him. "What did yah say?" She seethed, her Southern drawl becoming more noticeable in her rage. "I said you should be at home being beaten like you deserve. But what I was going to add to that was that your father is the most pathetic example of a man ever... which explains you I guess." He whispered in her ear. Mary snapped. Her hand moved so fast not even her eyes could follow, but everyone saw the result. Tom's head snapped to the side and Mary felt a sudden surge of energy. It was like something had broken in her core, and whatever was held in there was seeping throughout her, and for a brief instance, her body went numb.

Mary's eyes glazed over and she stumbled back a bit from the feeling. When she opened her eyes again, Tom was glaring death at her, a bright pink handprint already forming on his cheek. "You little bitch." He murmured, backhanding her across the face. For the second time that night Mary felt another surge, but this time it felt more powerful. She suddenly felt another, stronger rage forming within her, and it seemed that there was something flashing in the back of her head. Tom took a sharp breath, but shook whatever had bothered him off. "Don't be talkin' bout your momma like that." Mary replied smugly as she tucked her hair behind her ears.

A low rumbling of voices surrounded them both as a circle of Tommy's friends formed. Mary glanced to her left and right and realized she wasn't going anywhere. Tom ripped off his jacket, exposing those hours of football practice's effect on his body. He was built, and he was pissed. That was never a good combination. In an instance he lashed out and grabbed Mary's bare arm, intending to twist it around to get her in a helpless position. As soon as he made contact though, he stopped. His pale blue eyes glazed ever and rolled back into his head. In unison they screamed, both obviously in extreme pain. Tom collapsed to the ground and lay still while Mary fell to her knees and clutched her head. It felt as if her skull was about to split in two. Memories flashed in front of her closed eyes, but she didn't realize them. The two-tone became oblivious to the world around her until a pair of hands grabbed her shoulders.

"What did you do?" One of Tom's friends asked hysterically as he shoved her backwards so help could get to Tom. But instead of waiting for a reply, he scowled and turned his attention back to his friend. Mary shook her head, trying to rid herself of these new emotions welling up inside her but it was to no avail.

"Someone call the medics! And the cops! Mary's done something to him!" An unknown voice called to the crowd. _Cops?! No... I didn't do anything! I've got to get away._ Her thoughts raced as she looked for a means of escape. Suddenly, through the crowd, she saw her chance. _The woods._ She realized, as she took off, not chancing to look back.

Mary only stopped running when she felt she was about to collapse. Surprisingly though, she had already passed the distance at which she would usually stop at. Leaning against a tree, she scanned her surroundings and realized she had been here before. _I'm only a few miles behind my house..._She thought as she started in the direction to her home. _Wait... my parents. They'll kill me if I go back now._ She gasped and stopped in mid-step. "I need a place to stay for tonight... wait... there's a shooting house back here." Mary mumbled to herself as she turned and headed deeper into the woods in search of the forgotten shooting house.

Moments later, she reached the clearing the abandoned shooting house was located. After she had cleared away a few brambles, she climbed up the rickety ladder and pushed open the door. She cleared away a few cobwebs and took a look at her meager surroundings. The room itself was only about 5 feet long, and 5 feet wide. The ceiling, thankfully, was about 5 ½ feet, so she didn't have to stoop. Her mind was racing. _What's happening to me?_ She thought, staring at her hands. She felt like there was a strain in her head, like something was hiding there, but she didn't know what it was. She tried to ponder further on the subject, but her escape had taken a toll on her body. Mary curled up in a ball in the corner of the hut, and moments later she passed out.


	4. Chapter 4

As soon as Cerebro's alarm had gone off, Charles Xavier had rushed to the computer as quickly as his wheels would spin. Upon first glance, he thought the computer had made a mistake. The mutant it had detected looked exactly like Rogue, but upon closer inspection, he found that it wasn't. _What do we have here?_ The telepath wondered as he pulled up more information.

**Name: Mary Dawson**

**Age: 15 ((02/21/89))**

**Hair Color: Brown and White**

**Eyes: Brown**

**Height: 5'1**

**Weight: 115 lbs. **

**Parents: (Adopted) Steve Thomas Dawson, Sarah Jean Dawson**

**Location: Greenville, Alabama.**

**Power: Power & Memory Absorption.**

Xavier gasped and read no further on the information. It was very rare that mutants had the same power, but if they looked almost like twins? There was something more here than coincidence. He pulled up a strand of DNA, taken from the local hospital blood sample, and compared it to Rogue's. As he waited for the result, he ran over the possibilities. _If this is Rogue's sister, what effect will it have on both of them? The Rogue, who thinks she has been alone her entire life, will have a sister, a real sister. _Xavier knew Kurt and Rogue were foster siblings, but a blood relative was different. What effect would this have on the lonely teenager? Ever since her powers had gotten out of control, she had pulled away from the world. She didn't tell anyone, but Xavier could sense she was afraid it would happen again, and she was afraid the others didn't trust her anymore.

While the computer was still calculating its results, Xavier wanted to see how Mary's powers had actually emerged. He tried scanning for her brain waves, but he couldn't sense her anywhere. While this was unusual, it wasn't surprising; Mary had probably fallen asleep somewhere and that's why Charles couldn't detect her brain signature. He then decided to search the minds of those close to her, a friend perhaps. Charles concentrated, and moments later found what he was looking for.

_Oh man Mary... what did you do? Where are you? _Was the first thought he received from Amy Forest. He could sense strong fear, and knew the girl was near hysterical. He pushed past her fresh thoughts and delved deeper. He saw the news report that she had seen just moments ago. "Possible mutant attack at the Greenville School Fair!" A reporter with a receding hairline proclaimed. "A student, Mary Dawson, instigated a fight with Tommy Warner, the football captain of Greenville High. Fortunately no one was seriously injured, and Tommy is resting in the hospital... but Mary is missing. According to witnesses, Chad Crandall and Shana Long, Tommy tried to reason with Mary, but after much provocation grabbed her arm in order to lead her off the grounds." Said the reporter before he handed the microphone over to Shana Long, a junior with long blonde hair and an outfit no junior should be allowed out of the house wearing. "He was trying to get her to back off, and when he grabbed her arm, they both just started screaming and Tommy...Tommy..." She couldn't finish before she began bawling and was quickly surrounded by three more girls to be comforted.

The reported shook his head in pity before he turned to face the camera again. "Could this renegade teen be a mutant? Many of you know Ms. Dawson and say that she has never shown signs of having mutant powers before," He stated, pointing to the camera. "But, what if she has just been hiding them in an effort to gain our trust, then strike when we least expect it?" The man was about to go into a rant about mutants and their despicable powers when Charles saw Amy's mother click off the TV and run for the phone.

Xavier sighed. Thankfully this boy was not in a coma like Rogue's first victim had been, but this meant the crowd had seen Mary use her powers and had a strong feeling she was a mutant. _Oh dear. Hopefully the authorities will be reasonable when I explain Mary's predicament to them. _He hoped. There weren't many advocates of mutants that had much persuasion because of the mobs that protested so strongly against mutants and anyone who affiliated with 'the scourge of humanity'. The subject of mutants was an avoided one by those who actually wanted to make progress in tolerance. Consequently, there wasn't much progress in mutant tolerance. Charles was drawn out of his thoughts when the computer finished comparing the DNA of Rogue and Mary.

**Percentage of DNA: Rogue that matches new strand is calculated at 99.**

Xavier's eyes flashed, it was known if the two individuals had the same parents, the two have matching genes much more often than those who are unrelated. If their percentage of matching was this high, there was no doubt in his mind. _Rogue has a sister._ He thought, barely believing it himself even though the facts were right in front of him.

**_Rogue, could you meet me in Cerebro for a moment?_** He thought to her, wondering how he would be able to explain this.

After much persuasion, Rogue finally accepted the fact that she had a little sister. "Ok...and... now what?" She asked hesitantly, her green eyes magnifying her nervousness. "Well I suppose we should go find her shouldn't we? The authorities haven't been able to find her yet, so that's fortunate for us." Xavier replied somewhat off-handedly. "Authorities? As in cops? What's going on?" The younger mutant questioned. "Yes, well, there was an incident. She was in a fight when her powers activated, and she put a boy in the hospital. The local police was alerted but by the time they arrived, she had fled into the woods. I will go into detail on the Blackbird, but we need to leave immediately. I will alert Logan, Kitty and Kurt and we'll meet you in the hangar." Xavier informed. Rogue nodded wordlessly and watched the Professor wheel away to gather the others, and then she started for the Blackbird.

_A sister... What's gonna happen now? Ah mean, will we get along? Does she know our real parents? Will she even want tah come back with us?_ Her thoughts raced as he opened the door to the Blackbird and turned on the ignition. Soon, the deafening engine drowned out her thoughts and she sat down in the back of the plane and waited for takeoff.

By the time they had reached Greenville, Alabama Rogue had become extremely antsy. The team landed the jet in a clearing a few miles from where Mary was last spotted. "I plan on staying here and listening to the police reports to see if there's any news on her. If you all find her, remember that she's most likely just as terrified as Rogue was when her powers activated... be careful." Xavier warned from the Blackbird as the team filed out. "Oook... let's go." Rogue ordered as she started for the woods. **Bamf** "Vhoa there." Kurt said as he teleported in front of her. "What? We have tah find her and y'all are lagging." Rogue explained, trying to step around him. "Hold up there, Stripes." Logan ordered gruffly, sniffing the air. "She's nearby... I smell her." He announced as he started down a trail.

"I better, like, not get poison ivy all over me." Kitty scowled as she walked through a bush. They had been searching for about an hour, and the entire time Kitty had forgotten she could phase through all the poisonous plants "Yah're fine, Kit..." Rogue sighed, popping her neck. "Ok, is she hiding or something?" Kurt questioned. "I don't know... she may be in plain view... but since it's dark I'm not-." He never finished the sentence. "Hey, what's that?" Kitty inquired as they entered a clearing. They all followed her gaze and saw what seemed to be a small box on stilts. "A hunting house." Rogue said automatically, earning stares from her teammates. "What? Y'all don't know what those are?" She questioned incredulously. Her responses were the crickets chirping and blank stares. "Yah sit up there with your gun and wait for deer or turkey or whatever tha hell yah're hunting tah go by and shoot it." She explained simply. "Huh... that takes all the fun outta it." Logan said with a grin. "Ok, Elf, teleport up there and see if she's hiding in there, but turn on your inducer so you don't frighten her." He ordered. "Aye, aye captain." Kurt saluted, turning on his inducer with his tail and disappearing in a cloud of sulfur.

**Bamf**. "Ack, wer möchte innen hier jagen? (1)" Kurt whispered to himself when he inhaled a cobweb. He peered through the brimstone and saw a teenager asleep in the corner. Kurt tiptoed over to her and bent down to get a better view of Rogue's sister. "Überraschen. (2)" He murmured as he noticed her hair and the curve of her face. Her chin was a bit rounder than Rogue's, but it was clear these two were sisters, almost twins.

"Hey... wake up." He said softly as he nudged the sleeping teen. As soon as his hand made contact with her shoulder, her eyes shot open. Kurt jumped back at this, and Mary scrambled up. "Who are you?" She asked nervously. "I'm Kurt, just calm down." He soothed. "I don't know you... why should I calm down?" She retorted. "Because I can help. Listen, I know vhat you did and-." He began, but Mary cut him off. "Look... Ah didn't mean tah, Ah swear, Ah don't know what happened!" She explained. _Is she switching from Southern accent to normal?_ The older mutant noticed, and would have found it amusing if this wasn't a serious situation. "It's ok! Ve can help you... just come with me." He explained, reaching out for her hand. "We? We who? What, did they call in the FBI or something?" She asked panicked. "No! Look, just come with me please, ve can sort this out." Kurt tried again, taking Mary's hand. But Kurt had made a dire mistake, to turn on his image inducer, he had to take his glove off, and he had forgot to put it back on.

Kurt gasped and let go quickly; he fell back against the wall and tried to fight the feeling to pass out. Mary winced as memories flashed in front of her eyes. She saw a blue and fuzzy creature chasing a brunette around a pool, she saw him making jokes with two younger boys in front of his... mansion? Images flew by so quickly she couldn't catch them all, but the one that scared Mary the most was the last one she saw. She glimpsed, through the creature's eyes, a battle with people with terrifying super powers. "What... what are you?" She demanded, her eyes closed. When she got no response, she opened her eyes to see the boy was gone.

_No... he's gone to get backup or something...I've got to get out. I've got to-._ **Bamf. **A second later, Mary was on the ground outside. The momentum of whatever landed her there caused her to fall on her rear, and when she looked up she saw a group a few feet away aiding the boy that had touched her. "No... backup. They'll take me away... I'm a monster and they're gonna experiment on me or something." She mumbled frantically to herself as she stood wobbly. "Hey!" One of them called as she noticed Mary stand. It was the brunette she had seen in those images. The two-tone began to back up, and the brunette paused. "I've got to get away." Mary repeated to herself. **Bamf. **

Mary opened her eyes and gasped; she was in a tree. "What's happening to me?" She asked herself as she leaned against the pine. "What am I?" She mumbled as exhaustion began to overtake her again. She sat down on the branch, curled up into a ball, and began to cry.

****

**1 Ack, who would want to hunt in here?**

**2 Amazing.**

**Whee... poor scared little Mary! ::Snuggles:: No worries! It shall work out **

**YAY REVIWERS!! ::Tackles pounces hugs::**

**Agent-G - **Welll... now you can see it comes after mutant exposure and after Kurt and Rogue know they're foster siblings. I just felt like pushing the 'Slow-Southern' stereotype for some reason. ::Smacks self:: I'm Southern! Please don't kill me! I just needed someway for everyone to not attack to so I used the stereotype. About Amy being a mutant though? Lol I was wondering if anyone was going to notice the strangely pale part, but nope, she's not a mutant. Sorry to disappoint, it's a weird inside joke with a friend of mine who has a somewhat tan family and she's as white as a sheet. No one really knows why and I threw that in for her .

**The Ostracized – **Thanks! That's what I was trying to aim for without mirroring the episode entirely.


	5. Chapter 5

**Urg x.X ::pulls limp body into computer chair:: Sorry for the delay in chapter, it's been a busy school week. I've had PSATs, picture day, and every possible test and quiz possible! But I'm back! ::snuggles readers::. Hopefully the next chapter will come sooner, but I'm not sure; high school may get in the way . **

**Yay reviewers!! ::attackles::**

**Agent-G: **Kurt's got to learn one day that you can't touch living vacuums! ::Sigh:: Hopefully he'll get that soon. It'll be the next chapter I'm pretty sure that Rogue and Mary have a one on one talk; I had to get some other things finished first !

**Queen Peacock: **::Snuggles!:: Thanks! I'm glad ya like it!

**ZIEL1: **Thanks! .

&&&&

"Kurt? Kurt are you Ok?" Kitty questioned. "Ja, but I'm sick of getting absorbed while recruiting." Kurt mumbled, his blue tail lashing about. "Can you keep going?" Logan asked gruffly. "Probably not... I don't even think I can stand." The younger mutant admitted. "Ok," The feral man sighed, running his hands through his messy hair. "Kit, you hang out here with him and Rogue and me will keep after Mary." He decided as he looked into the nearby tree line, searching for any signs of the girl.

About ten minutes after leaving Kitty and Kurt in the clearing, Logan paused and sniffed the air. "I swear she's around here somewhere." He growled as his eyes traced their surroundings. "Where?" Rogue questioned, peering through the darkness. "I don't know!" He replied frustrated, his eyes darting around. Little did they know, his call had gotten Mary's attention, and she was watching them from above.

_What do they want from me?_ She thought. They didn't have anything that reminded Mary of police officers, they weren't even dressed properly. The older man was in a black and orange jumpsuit, and the girl was wearing a black suit with a green chest plate. The two-tone was trying to get a better look at the duo when she slipped, nearly falling off the branch. Fortunately though, she was able to grab a nearby limb to keep herself stable but in the process she caused a few pinecones to fall. _Shit._

"Ow!" Rogue exclaimed as a pinecone fell on her head. Soon after that one, 3 more fell near it. "What are the chances of that happening?" Logan chuckled as Rogue massaged her sore head. "Do yah think?" Rogue whispered as they both turned their sights to the treetops. "MARY?" Rogue called...nothing at first. "Mary? Please... Ah know what yah're going through!" She tried again. Suddenly **Bamf, **Mary was standing in front of them, looking confused and exhausted. "What tha hell?" She questioned, looking up at where she once perched. She then noticed the two standing near her and she jumped back. "Wait!" Rogue ordered, raising her hands.

Mary surveyed the one who called to her. This older girl had the same hair Mary did, and there were other attributes they shared as well. "What?" Mary asked suspiciously. "We need tah talk." The girl stated. "If you will come back with us-" The other started, but Mary didn't seem to like this idea. "I'm not going anywhere... we can talk right here." She disagreed firmly, planting her feet. "Fine," The man sighed, waving his hand to give the girl the go-ahead. "Ok, well he's Logan," The two-tone began. "And I'm Rogue...err... Marie. But I'm mostly known as Rogue." She explained. "Ok...Logan, Rogue... what exactly do you want?" Mary asked warily, her eyes shifting from Rogue to Logan. "Well... we know what you've been through tonight, and we know what you are." Logan explained. "You know more than I do then... what am I exactly?" Mary questioned, still obviously uneasy.

"Ok, you know those reports of mutants that have been on the news for a while?" Rogue inquired. Mary nodded slowly. "Well, yeah, we're those mutants people have been talking about. We live in New York with a man who helps us learn how to control our powers." She finished simply. "Ok...I've heard a little on the mutants, but word about that doesn't come too far down here. All I've heard is that y'all are freaks of nature and cause a bunch of trouble... but I've seen y'all do good things too so I'm not really sure what to believe. Are you saying I'm one of you? How can that happen? I was fine a few hours ago!" Mary exclaimed; the night's events were beginning to catch up with her and she was on the brink of hysterics. "Well how else do you explain sucking the power out of someone?" Logan countered. "I... He... Its..." Mary tried to explain futilely. Logan raised an eyebrow in slight amusement. "Ok... powers." She agreed after a moment, looking at her hands. "Well... how do I control it? Cause if I can't this is a pretty sucky power." She scowled. Logan and Rogue exchanged glances. "Well... that's the problem. If it's anything like mah power, it may take a while before yah gain control." Rogue admitted. "So I'm stuck like this?! What am I gonna do?" Mary demanded, her voice shaking. "That's why you need to come back with us. We have a friend that can help you, but you've gotta trust us." Logan offered again. "I... don't know..." Mary mumbled, stepping back from them. "Please?" The one called Rogue asked her. Mary looked into her eyes and saw something familiar about them; they seemed trustworthy. "I...Ok." She gave up. She was too tired to argue anymore, and she figured that if anything was to happen and she needed to get away she could use her new powers.

"Ah, Mary. I'm glad you decided to return with Logan and Rogue." Greeted a man in a wheelchair. "I'm Professor Charles Xavier." He introduced himself. _Maybe I shouldn't have come..._Mary began to doubt as the doors closed behind her. "No, I assure you that it was a very good idea that you come." Xavier smiled. Mary perked an eyebrow and backed up a bit. "No need to worry." He comforted. "As you were told, everyone here has special abilities. Tonight your gift was unleashed, but you need to learn control. That's where I come in. I run an Institute in New York to help teenagers like yourself learn to harness and use their abilities for good." He explained. "What good could my power do?" Mary snorted. "To learn that, it would be best to come back with us." Xavier replied with a warm smile and promise in his voice. "I'm still not sure." Mary muttered nervously. "Would you feel any better if we went and discussed it with your parents?" Xavier offered. "No... actually... I think I'll accept your offer." Mary said quickly. Those on the jet looked a bit shocked. "I still think it would be best if we went and talked with your parents to inform them of you decision." Xavier pushed after a moment.

"It's not like they would care." Mary groaned as Logan started for the cockpit. "What's that about Charles?" Logan asked as he started up the Blackbird. "Mary seems to fear her parents... she thinks it would be best to just take off and never return." Charles shook his head. Logan grunted in response. "So Kid, where's a good place to land this thing?" The feral man asked gruffly. "There's a baseball field about a half mile away from my house no-one uses anymore." She replied. Logan nodded in response and they took off.

Ten minutes later, Logan, Professor Xavier, and Mary were standing at the Dawson's front door. Logan had changed into civilian clothes as to not alert the Dawson's to anything suspicious. After a few raps on the door, the T.V was heard being clicked off and someone stormed towards the door. "Yeah?" A man greeted harshly as he pulled the door open. He glanced suspiciously at Logan and Xavier, but when his eyes fell on Mary, his lip curled. "Hello... I'm Steve Dawson. I see you found my daughter." He greeted again, although this time he tried to make himself seem pleasant; he failed. He walked out onto the porch and grabbed Mary gently by her now-covered arm. "I'm sorry she's caused so much trouble... I plan on having a talk with her." He explained, although Mary had no doubt in her mind that when he said 'talk' he meant beating. Mary was sure Logan realized this as well when he saw Steve tighten his grip on Mary's arm.

"Actually, Mr. Dawson, we were hoping to have a talk with you about your daughter's situation." Xavier interrupted. Once again, Steve tightened his grip painfully, and Mary winced. "Listen here Bub, if you don't take your hand off her-" Logan threatened, but Xavier cut him off. "Please, may we sit down and have a talk with you and your wife?" Charles asked again, this time his tone making it obvious that it wasn't an option. "Sure, whatever." Steve agreed bitterly as he released his daughter and reluctantly invited the men in. Logan growled as he passed the taller man, and Steve scowled in disgust and turned his attention to Mary. "Now you've done it." He mouthed as he slammed the door in her face.

"Well that's pleasant." A sarcastic voice called from the shadows. Mary jumped and spun around to see Rogue. "I thought you were told to stay on the plane?" Mary snorted. "Why else do yah think they call me Rogue?" She pointed out. "Because Marie wouldn't fit you." Mary grinned as she started for the backyard. "Where are yah goin'?" The older girl questioned, following Mary anyway. "To pack... I'm not gonna be allowed back in the house when Professor and Logan tell my parents about me being a mutant." Mary explained as she slid open her window and climbed in.

Rogue followed and took in Mary's room. Three walls were white and one black, supposedly painted to match her hair. She had a few bookshelves packed with novels by famous authors and a bunk bed. Mary walked over to her closet and pulled out a few suitcases and began to load her clothes into them. Suddenly, yelling was heard in the other room, and Rogue guessed the Professor had just told the Dawson's about their daughter being a mutant. "Well that sounds like fun...how did your parents react to you being a mutant?" Mary sighed as she moved from one drawer to another. Rogue rolled her eyes; she was about to tell Mary that her foster mother had tried to deceive Rogue into thinking the X-Men were evil. "Ah didn't have anyone tah tell really, Ah just came." Rogue told a half-lie. "Lucky you." Mary muttered as she pulled her hair up. As she did, her eye became visible. "Ouch, did that happen in the fight tonight?" Rogue questioned, trying to get a better look. "Heh, not tonight." Mary replied quickly as she scanned her room to see if she left anything forgotten. More yelling was heard and suddenly, someone was heard storming towards Mary's door. The girl's eyes widened as she realized what was about to happen. "We may wanna leave...now." She urged as she tossed her luggage out the window and motioned for Rogue to get out. The older mutant had one leg out the window when Steve barged in.

"YAH FREAK! Ah knew yah were a mistake when we took yah in and this is proof! Ah don't think yah little bitch should be able tah have a chance tah learn how tah control it, Ah can just BEAT IT OUTTA YAH!" He screamed, his eyes flashing with insane rage as he backhanded Mary across the face. Upon contact, Steve staggered a bit, but was back again in an instance. Mary, on the other hand was slammed into a wall, her lip bleeding. Rogue was on him in an instance. "Listen hear yah yahoo!" She screamed in his face as she kicked him in the shin. Steve howled in pain and nearly fell, but regained his composure and raised his hand again. Before he could release his anger on Rogue, Logan came out of nowhere and grabbed his wrist.

"Don't touch the kids." He snarled, claws releasing. Steve froze in sight of the glinting metal. "Rogue, please help Mary gather her things. We're leaving." Charles ordered, his voice unusually cold. Steve just stood there, motionless. Sarah walked up next to him and glowered at their daughter. "If you leave, don't even think about coming back." She hissed.

"I don't plan on it." Mary whispered as Rogue led her past. "I will send people for the rest of Mary's possessions, and I don't expect there will be trouble, will there?" Charles stated, his calm voice leaving no room for argument. "Sure, we don't want the contaminated shit in our house anyway." Steve spat. Rogue glowered at Steve and Sarah as she ushered Mary out of the room with an arm rapped around her sister's shoulder. Logan and Charles remained a few minutes to get details straight, and followed the two girls shortly after.


	6. Chapter 6

Y'all have NO idea what crap I've been through since I've last updated. So just to give you a run through: School evil. Mom making my life miserable. I'm fighting depression . WHEE! So forgive me if this isn't as great as it should be. I'm sorry it took so long to get it up! Oh and by the way, my computer is screwed up, so if it's doing something weird… sorry for that too.

**Chapter 6**

As they stepped out of the house, Mary flinched as she felt Rogue rap her arm around her shoulder; the fact that Mary knew she could possibly kill anyone with a touch unnerved her, and she was beginning to flinch at human contact. She yawned and winced as her busted lip stretched a bit. She quickly put her hand to it and wiped away the fresh blood. "We can fix that on the Blackbird." Rogue pointed out. Mary nodded as they walked down the driveway. They were about to turn down the street when they heard someone call out.

"MARY!" Amy screamed as she dashed past mailboxes to reach her friend. "Amy?" Mary squinted into the dark as the other teen approached. "Mary!" Amy repeated as she plowed into the shorter girl. Rogue hopped out of the way just in time and stared on in confusion. "Sweety you had me worried!" Amy exclaimed as she gasped for air and squeezed her friend tightly. "Amy…" Mary replied weakly, flinching at the contact. It also didn't help that she had just gotten all the air knocked out of her lungs.

"What happened? And who are you?" Amy questioned as she pulled away and stared at Rogue in her X-Men uniform.

"What did you know?" Rogue demanded; she wanted to know how far news had traveled already.

"There was a whole news report on it! Something about Mary nearly putting Tommy in a coma by touching him? Mary… they're all claiming you're a mutant… the cops have already been by our place and here." Amy reported.

"Amy…Heh… you're not gonna believe this, but apparently I am a mutant." Mary chuckled slightly after a moment. Amy stared back blankly.

"What? Since when?" She inquired incredulously.

"Since tonight? I'm not sure…" Mary admitted.

"Ok? And who is this again?" Amy mumbled dumbfounded after a moment as she pointed at Rogue.

"This is Marie. She came from up north to tell me about a school they run for mutants." Mary introduced. "Marie, this is Amy Forest." Mary stated. Rogue nodded to Amy, and Amy to Rogue.

"So… up north? You're… you're leaving?" Amy questioned.

"I think I need to… I need help with this and this Xavier dude says he can help." Mary replied sadly; the last thing she wanted to do was leave Amy, but it seems as if she was about to.

"But… its just powers, can't you just not use them? Do you really have to leave?" The two-tone begged.

"I can't control this Amy! I did almost put Tommy into a coma tonight by touching him. I can't turn this power off… if I touch **anyone** I could kill them! Xavier said he could train me and help me find a way to control this." Mary explained, tears welling up in her eyes.

Amy paused for a moment as she fought the urge to grab hold of Mary and never let her go; the girl had been her best friend since 2nd grade. They were always together! Amy didn't know if she could let Mary go now so easily. She looked into her best friend's eyes and saw she was hurting just as much with this decision, and they both knew it was for the best. "I…I didn't know. Yeah… Mary get up there and figure out how to control this so you can come home sooner Ok?" Amy agreed after a moment of searching for her words. She stared at Mary's uncovered hands and a tear rolled down her face. Amy pulled her hands into her sleeves, grabbed Mary's hand and squeezed it. "It's gonna be boring down here without ya." She pointed out, biting back the tears.

"You'll find some way to make it interesting." Mary retorted as she squeezed her hand back and let the tears fall freely. The two girls hugged and Rogue looked away; there wasn't anyone there for her when she had gotten her powers, and Amy Forest looked as if Mary was her world. The separation was going to be hard on both of them, but she made sure her and Mary would come back for frequent visits.

The two pulled apart and wiped the tears from their eyes. "I guess I'll see you?" Amy asked.

"I promise…I love you. " Mary assured. "Love you too Baby." Amy replied and turned to go but Mary grabbed her arm. "Hey… take this." Mary ordered as she pulled off her cross necklace. "Isn't this your favorite?" Amy sniffled as she palmed it. "Yeah… so that means I'm coming back to get it." Mary explained with a small smile. Amy rolled her eyes and put the jewelry. "Tell your mom I said I love her… Ok?" Mary beseeched. "No problem." The taller girl replied as she took one last look and started for home, more and more tears running down her face with every step.


	7. Chapter 7

**Geeez it's cold . K so not that cold to everyone else, but its cold to me! I can't help it! Anyways… yeah… here we go again XD. **

**I love you reviewer people! **

**paprika90**: Maybe I should move to Canada and get away from all my dadgum tests! And yesh… there will definitely be more bonding going on between our two sisters! Thanks for the compliments.

**Zarien: **Thanks!

**Ldypebsaby**: Thanks for the compliments! I can't give anything away too big but let me just say Mary's going to have an interesting roommate and the people at the Institute are going to be a shock for her XD.

**Mourning Star under the Moon**: I agree with ya… I can't picture Logan calling the Professor 'Charles'. And whee the question of Kurt is answered in this chapter!

**On with the story!!! … **

Mary stared blankly out the window as the Blackbird took off. Below them passed her home, Amy's house... all childhood memories she held so dear. Soon Logan flew them above the clouds and into the starry night. Mary tore her eyes away from the twinkling stars and stared over at Rogue, who was trying to look inconspicuous as she cast sideways glances at the younger girl. "Can I help you?" Mary chuckled, putting on a happy face.

"Just thinkin'." Rogue replied with a small lopsided grin.

"About?" 

Rogue paused for a moment, wondering just how she should tell Mary the truth. Mary perked an eyebrow as she waited for her response. Rogue mentally laughed; the raised eyebrow was something Rogue did whenever she was at a loss of words for something stupid her friends had done. As it may have been guessed, it was mostly directed at Kitty. "Did yah ever know your real parents?" The older girl questioned, curious to know if either one had ever met their abandoning parents.

Mary bit her lip, wincing as it once again split open. "Never... they left me when I was a few months old on the Dawson's doorstep. Steve and Sarah never met them, they just took me in anyway...sometimes I wonder why, they never treated me well at all really." She replied.

"Looks like we have something in common." Rogue sighed; she had wished Mary at least knew who their parents were. "Ah was adopted when Ah was little... Ah never knew mah parents either. A few years back mah powers emerged and Ah ran off and ended up at tha Institute." The older girl explained.

Mary gave a comforting smile, "Well, it looks like you ended up in a pretty decent place in the end right?"

"It's better than yah can ever know. Sure... there are some people Ah'm not too fond of," Rogue's mind flashed to Jean. "But then there's the people Ah know would die for me. Turns out, Xavier even led me tah find some long lost family members." She elaborated, nodding in a dozing Kurt's direction.

"Him?" Mary asked incredulously. Rogue nodded with a chuckle.

"Yep... Kurt's my little foster brother. He can be annoying at times, but he's one of my best friends."

Mary raised both brows with interest. Then something struck her as odd, Rogue had said long lost family members. As in plural. "So you found Kurt... was there someone else too?" She inquired as she shifted her position in her seat so she was facing the other girl.

"As it turns out... Ah have a little sister as well." Rogue continued, and built up her courage to go on with the explanation. "She's 15...and it turns out she's a mutant as well. It's kinda weird too, she has tha same birthmark as me in tha exact...same...place." She elaborated as she placed an index finger on the center of her hairline, right where the write hair grew.

Something flashed in Mary's eyes. _"What is she getting at? She can't be implying me...can she?"_ She thought nervously as she picked at her sleeves. "And…and what's this girl's name exactly?" Mary asked quietly. Rogue took a deep breath and exhaled, her white hair fluttering with the sudden ragged gale.

"Mary."

"What?!" Mary demanded, her voice becoming shrill as disbelief overtook her. "What evidence do yah have? So we have tha same hair... that proves nothing!" She pointed out, her accent becoming obvious as her nervousness rose.

"Listen... tha Professor has a computer that detects new mutants when they use their powers. When mutant genes are activated and their powers emerge, Cerebro pulls up a short bio of tha mutant. It's really rare that mutants have tha same powers…and Xavier thought it was even stranger that we looked so much alike, so he pulled up a DNA strand and compared it tah mine. As…as it turns out... they match. So…" Rogue paused, trying to read Mary's reaction. It was difficult; Mary's dark brown eyes hid her feelings well when she wanted them too. Her face didn't help solve the mystery either. Her lips were slightly open, the blood having pooled in her mouth. Rogue couldn't tell if her mouth was ajar in disbelief, amazement, or joy. Her brows were slightly furrowed, but again, this did nothing to help Rogue.

"So..." Mary said, her voice barely above a whisper. "We're... we're sisters!" She exclaimed in a soft but elated tone as she began to cry. Rogue reacted quickly as she threw up the armrest and pulled her little sister into a hug, trying to soothe the younger girl's sobs. After a moment, the cries quieted and Mary pulled away. "You didn't tell me sooner? What kind of sister are you?" She joked, wiping her teary eyes on her sleeves. Rogue opened her mouth, but closed it and shrugged her shoulders.

"Give me a break! Ah never had a little sister before, Ah'm still getting used to it." She joked back as she pulled Mary into another hug, this time letting the tears fall as well. Once they pulled apart it was a frenzy of soft chatter so they could get to know each other better, but not annoy the others while they rested from the mission. 

"Looks like Mary's handling the news well." Charles chuckled as he stole a quick glance over his shoulder at the two girls in the back row of the Blackbird. 

"Yeah...hopefully they won't be fighting like sisters anytime soon." Logan grunted as he stared out into the night. Charles thought of that for a moment and shook his head. He had gathered that Mary had a personality...and temper... much like Rogue's. If those two were to get into a fight, he was sure he would be replacing drywall at the Institute. "So, how do you think she's going to do Chuck?" Logan asked after a moment. 

"Referring to the Institute? I suppose it will take her some time to adjust to living with so many people... plus she is rooming with-"

"No…I was talking about her power." Logan interrupted. "Rogue's been here a while and she can barely control it. I know you had a breakthrough with her so now if she concentrates hard enough, she can hold contact for a few seconds before she's exhausted and can't suppress it anymore. But…I don't know Chuck, how do you think Mary will handle being cut off from touch for God-knows how long?" He questioned.

Charles steepled his fingers as he thought about it, _"This may have some damage to her mind-set. She will have to get used to being cut off from contact from everyone…except Rogue. But…maybe now that Mary's come back with us it will be easier for both of them to deal with their mutation."  
_  
"Well Chuck?" Logan pushed, becoming impatient by the other man's blank stare.

"I was thinking. Before, Rogue was completely cut off from everyone because of the potency of her mutation. But now, we have another mutant with the same power. This will essentially nullify their powers to one another. Mary may be able to handle being able to have contact with only one person, and Rogue will now be able to touch without exhausting herself or harming others. These two will help the other one cope. I really think Mary will handle it quite well as long as she has Rogue by her side... and vice-versa." He finished, praying that his theory would prove true. 

Kurt let out a loud snore and twisted around in his seat. Kitty rolled her eyes and tugged his tail to stop the snoring and to wake the boy up so he wouldn't eventually face-plant in the aisle.

"Autsch!'' Kurt exclaimed as he was rudely awoken. He looked around, expecting to see an angry teacher glaring at him but instead found Kitty. "What vas that for?" He demanded exhaustedly as he massaged his lower back.

"You snore." Kitty answered with a smile as she twisted around to spy on Mary and Rogue. "I, like, can't believe Rogue has a little sister." She muttered in amazement.

"I know... so I guess that means I have a little sister too." Kurt smiled, his brown eyes flashing (He had kept his inducer on in an effort to keep Mary from freaking out).

"Um...I don't think that means she's your little sister. Mystique only adopted Rogue...not Mary." The brunette pointed out.

"...But..." Kurt struggled to find a way to make himself right. "She's Rogue's little sister, so I'll adopt her as my little sister just to make us a big happy family." He grinned, satisfied with his answer even if it made no real sense.

Kitty narrowed her eyes in confusion. "Kurt... are you sure Mary didn't, like, absorb your logical side?" She asked, not sure of whether she was joking or serious. Kurt was about to respond when they heard a snort from a few rows back. They turned to see the disturbance and saw Rogue covering her mouth, tears streaming down her face as her body convulsed with laughter. "…Wow." Kitty mumbled as she and Kurt turned back around and sat in their seats.

"I always knew Rogue vas more of the quiet type... I kinda guessed Mary vas too. But now…they both seem very…happy." Kurt muttered as he tried to get used to this happier side of Rogue he hoped wouldn't stay around for very long. _"Not that I vant her unhappy... it's just she's always been the quick wit with a sharp tongue. I don't think I could handle Rogue like this 24-7."_ He shuddered as he pictured his sister walking around in hot pink.

"This is very weird... and I think we should get a picture." Kitty whispered deviously. 

"Why? And where vould you get a camera anyway?" 

"Because we want to have proof that we saw Rogue giddy! It rarely happens and you know it. And you know we keep cameras in the back for recon missions." The girl explained as she slipped out of her seat and headed nonchalantly towards the back.

"Rogue... I really can't remember the last time I saw you so happy." Kitty greeted with a warm smile as she hid the camera behind her back.

"Well yah should take a picture so yah can remember it forever." Rogue replied sarcastically with a cheery voice as she faced her roommate. 

"Like, great idea!" The valley-girl agreed as she whipped out the camera and snapped the picture before either of the sisters knew what happened.

"Kit now yah went and did it!" Rogue roared as she lunged for the girl. Kitty yelped as Rogue went right through her body and fell to the floor. Mary gasped and then realized it must be her mutation.

"Its gonna take me a while to get used to this." She muttered as she stared at her sister on the floor. Rogue was currently glaring at her roommate with a sincere smile on her face. Apparently, even though the teen was extremely pissed off, she was still in good humor. In a flash, she scrambled up and lunged for Kitty. The brunette yelped and ran towards the back of the plane where she had found the camera. She phased through the door and locked it from the inside.

"Kitty Pryde! Yah open this door right now and maybe Ah won't kill yah!" Rogue threatened as she pounded on the steel door. There was no response, but Kitty did quickly phase her head through the door to stick out her tongue. Rogue growled and began to pound on the cold steel again.

Mary snorted as she watched her sister try and beat down the barrier again. Suddenly there was a flash of light and a cloud of smoke, and the boy she had previously absorbed was sitting next to her. "Hello." He greeted with a toothy grin. 

"Hey." Mary responded softly as she flinched back. 

"So... just for my own personal safety... I vas wondering if you had our sister's temper?" He questioned, fear flashing ever so slightly in his eyes. Mary glanced back at Rogue, who was still trying to reason with Kitty to open the door.

"I think I do... probably worse actually." Mary snorted. There was a moment of silence before Mary spoke up again. "So... how are you?" She asked hesitantly.

"I'm fine now... just a bit tired. It's not the first time I've been absorbed. The question is how are you? I vas your first mutant to absorb ja?" The German boy asked as he surveyed his little sister.

"I'm fine... I got a load of your memories though I think. I don't think I have your power anymore though. But... I'm confused; the memories are all screwed up. I saw a blue... thing in my head when I absorbed you. What was that?" She inquired.

One of the corners of Kurt's mouth curved in a sad smile. "You promise you won't freak if I show you?" Mary nodded slowly and Kurt pressed a button on his watch. In an instance, his creamy skin was replaced by dark blue fur, and his chocolate brown eyes turned pale yellow.

Mary jumped a bit, but instantly became fond of his form. "You look like an elf!" She exclaimed as she ran her covered finger along his spaded tail.

Kurt snorted as his tail lashed around and pointed at Mary's white streak. "And you look like a skunk. So ve're even." He smiled, his pointed teeth gleaming. "Oh... by the way," Kurt added as it crossed his mind. "Is it Ok if I call you my sister as vell? I just figured that Rogue's little sister could be mine as vell." He chuckled, blushing slightly at being so blatant.

Mary opened her mouth and paused. "Sure yeah... I guess its cool with me." She smiled, her dark brown eyes shining.

"Sweet! More family for da fuzzy dude!" He exclaimed as Rogue walked back defeated. "Ja…well I guess I'll see you later. Rogue, don't put any horrible thoughts in our little sister's head." He chastised, pointing a fuzzy blue finger in the older girl's face. Rogue perked an eyebrow and Kurt teleported to the back to talk with Kitty.

"Did you get your picture?" Mary inquired.

"No." Rogue sighed as she propped her head on her hand. "But Ah'll get her after we land... which shouldn't take that long." She explained. Mary hadn't noticed it before but they were definitely loosing altitude. She stared at the back of the seat in front of her and tried to calm her thoughts. Sure, the plane ride had been great, but she didn't know how she would react to all the students. Mary had never been very social, and living in a house of teenagers wouldn't be easy to adjust to. Hopefully she would get a decent roommate.

"Hey Rogue? Who's my roommate again?" Mary asked as the plane entered the hangar.

"Her name's Tabitha Smith."

**Yep, Tabitha's back with the X-Men. I figured that since she disappeared when she left the Brotherhood that I could bring her back to the Institute. If that put any of y'all off I'm sorry! But she's one of my favorite characters.**


	8. Chapter 8

**::Cries:: **EXAMS SUCK HARDCORE!Rawr I hate them . Anyways… yeah… this chapter didn't deal with much but with my past few weeks I felt to drained to jump into anything…

Quote of the Day:

**Tara:** ::Slams on breaks and nearly plows into back of car:: What the Fuk? Why did he STOP?

**Me:** Maybe cause there's a STOP SIGN!

**Tara:** Well who the hell pays attention to them?

**Me:** People who follow the LAW!

**Tara:** Well I'm not one of them damnit!

**YAY REVIEWERS!!!**

**Ldypebsaby**: Whee yes Kurt is adorable ::snuggles him::. Thanks for the compliments!

**Prophet-Song:** Really? A Mary-Sue? Whoopsie XD… Oh well, at least ya like the story!

**Agent-G:** Awww I'm sorry i forgot you!! I can't believe I did… you've been with the story since chapter 1! ::Tackles:: Woot! Well… hehe I think you're gonna like Tabitha and Mary rooming together… is de mischievous.

**Mourning Star under the Moon: **Thanks for the tips with the accents! I was getting a little confused at times XD. I plan on there being some Kurt memories in the next chapter …

**Eyes of Brown: ** Whee thanks EB I really like that line too hehe

**Brandy Lebeau: **Hehe thanks! I like Brandy… your stories are pretty good!

**&&&& **Chapter 8 **&&&&**

Mary hesitantly walked down the plank and into the hangar. She gaped in awe at the machines that were there; these were definitely top of the line technology. **_"Rogue, why don't you show Mary to her room while Logan gets the bags."_** Xavier's voice echoed in her head. Mary shuddered and rubbed her temples.

"Does that not creep you out?" She asked as they headed for the elevators.

"Not so much anymore... besides mah psyches have helped me put up a mental shield so Ah don't feel him deep in mah head, just on tha edges." She explained.

"Psyches? You mean voices right?"

"Sorta... but not really. Its really hard tah explain." Rogue paused. "Ok... did yah feel anything after yah absorbed Tommy or Kurt?" She asked.

"Yeah... like... a presence." Mary paused and tried to explain, but Rogue halted her.

"Ah have them too. At first yah can't really feel them, its just like a dream that yah barely remember...it doesn't bother yah. But after yah absorb more and more people that presence becomes more solid. If yah have too many they can start talkin' tah yah and they'll push for control over your body." The mutant explained as she tapped her head.

"So... absorbing is really worse than we first thought?" Mary pushed as the elevator started to rise

"Not exactly...Yah can build up mental blocks against them; its like putting them in a cage. And like Ah told yah on tha plane Ah've gotten better control of mah powers than Ah once did, as soon as you're able tah gain a little control yah don't have tah worry so much about absorbing someone." Rogue explained as the doors opened to reveal a huge foyer.

Mary looked around wide-eyed at the mansion. From what she could see there was a spacious living room just ahead, with leather furniture that looked extremely comfortable. _"How can he pay for all this?"_ Mary pondered as she heard the TV click off.

"Shades give me back the remote!" An annoyed female voice demanded in the next room.

"The new student is here, we need to say hello." Another female voice chastised.

"Yeah, its Ok Boom-Boom, it's being taped anyway." A male voice broke in.

Someone scowled, most likely the one who wanted to watch TV, and moments later the trio was standing in the foyer to greet Mary. "Hello. I'm Jean Grey." A cheery redhead greeted as she extended her hand. Mary was about to accept it when she realized she still wasn't wearing any gloves; the entire night she had just been pulling her sleeves down over her hands, and she didn't think her sleeves would stretch to allow a handshake. Mary gave a small smile that signaled she wasn't planning on shaking hands anytime soon.

"I'm Scott Summers... I guess I'm the team leader." The teenager broke in. Mary nodded.

_"Lets see if Rogue's description of the students here was right. I guess Jean is Ok, but I don't think I could room with the cheeriness. Scott is a little proud so far... but I think I can live with it. If I can't well I can always be rebellious to get his boxers in a knot."  
_  
"Hey babe! Welcome to mutant manor, where there's a blast 24-7... most of the time caused by me. I'm Tabitha Smith." A blonde winked as she made a fist and opened it to reveal four small glowing orbs. "Heads up Shades!" She warned with a maniacal giggle as she tossed the spheres towards the teen. Scott jumped just in time to avoid the explosion. Mary couldn't help but laugh as she saw the older boy scramble. After a moment she realized why they name seemed familiar: Tabitha Smith was to be her roommate. She went wide-eyed in alarm, but then considered this fact for a moment and shrugged; she knew she was going to have to room with someone, and at least Tabitha had an interesting personality.

_"She can't be **that** bad…right? At least she'll keep the place interesting."_ She hoped.

"Tabitha." Jean fumed, her red tresses making it seem as if her hair was on fire from anger.

"Chill Jean." The blonde rolled her eyes as she slung an arm over Mary's shoulder. The younger girl winced and ducked out of it and scooted closer to Rogue. "So Roguey's sister is just as social as Rogue is." Tabitha joked as she became preoccupied with her manicure.

"Well considering she has the same power as her sister I believe I would be quite nervous about human contact as well." Charles broke in as the elevators opened again to reveal Logan and himself. "Tabitha I'm sure you recall being absorbed; it is not a pleasant experience. Hopefully you will keep that in mind while you're rooming with Mary." He added with a smirk.

"Yeah yeah," Tabitha waved carelessly. "So... Minigoth, wanna see your room?" She asked. Mary nodded and Logan set down Mary's bags. Tabitha pouted, but when she saw she wasn't getting Logan to tote the luggage upstairs she rolled her eyes and grabbed a few bags. Mary snorted, grabbed the remaining bags and followed the blonde up the stairs.

"So, this is it." Tabitha declared as she kicked open a door. It flew back to reveal a large light blue room, one side of which was covered with posters. "I tried to clean it up... but yeah that didn't work out so well. It's pretty nice; the French doors open out onto a balcony over the grounds. There's a big oak tree right near it too so you can sneak out easier." The blonde winked as she lumbered over to Mary's double-sized bed and dropped her bags.

"What about security? I hear this place has an insane system." Mary spoke up.

"But I know the code." The blonde smirked in response as she flopped down on her unmade bed.

Mary raised her eyebrow in amusement. "Are you gonna tell it to me?"

"Maybe. Depends on how much I like you." Tabitha snorted, her amusement apparent.

"I could just absorb you and find out." Mary reminded as she waved her fingers.

"Do you really want me in you head? Rogue's told me I'm one of the voices that doesn't shut up." Tabitha giggled.

"…Good point." Mary agreed after a moment as she unzipped one of her bags and began to pull out clothes. Tabitha watched the other girl unpack for a few moments before her attention waned and she grabbed a magazine. Mary rolled her eyes and dumped the contents of her bags out onto her bed and tossed the empty suitcases in her closet. She spent the next few minutes trying to keep her clothes folded neatly, but gave up and began tossing everything in the drawers messily.

"Oh thank God. I was hoping you weren't a neat freak." Tabitha breathed a sigh of relief as she rolled off her mattress and sauntered over. She picked through the pile of clothing carelessly dumped and a glint shone in her eyes. "Babe! These rock!" Tabitha squealed in delight as she pulled out a black and red halter-top. "How the hell did you get out of the house with these?" She demanded as she pulled out a black miniskirt to match.

"You're not the only one who knows how to sneak out." Mary snickered as she rolled up her sleeves and popped her neck. "Man… unpacking sucks." She muttered as she grabbed another pair of jeans and tossed them in the drawer.

"Whoa there, watch the skin." Tabitha said as Mary nearly bumped into her uncovered arm. The last time she had been absorbed, she had been unconscious for a few hours and had to deal with her own personality in Rogue's body. It goes without saying that it was an experience she didn't want to relive anytime soon. Mary shrugged as she closed the drawer.

The two continued to unpack and chat about each other, and Mary learned that Tabitha had once been with the X-Men, had left to join the Brotherhood, had gotten kicked out of that house, and had shortly after returned to the X-Men. Tabitha's reasoning was that she knew she couldn't go home, and she realized the X-Men and Xavier would be better for her. Mary was trying to listen to Tabitha, but found it difficult seeing as she was exhausted. She checked the clock and knew why; it was 3 AM. She hadn't had any sleep for hours save that hour's nap after her powers emerged. She tried to stifle a yawn, but failed and flopped down on her bed. She shoved the few remaining clothes on the floor and stared up at Tabitha.

"What? You're tired? Come on! I thought we could finish up and hit the town!" Tabitha explained, her eyes shining with mischief.

"No way. I'm exhausted…" Mary muttered as she rubbed her eyes and winced as she hit her tender bruise. She kicked off her shoes and rolled off her bed to grab her Pj's that lay on the ground. "I'm gonna get a shower and get to bed…what time do I need to get up in the morning?"

"Nah don't worry about it Kid, sleep as late as you want tomorrow… I'll keep back the wave of students that wanna meet ya." Tabitha assured as she showed Mary the way to the bathroom. Mary smiled thankfully and shut the bathroom door.

She stripped out of her dirt and sweat covered clothes and stepped into the steaming shower, relishing the hot water on her sore muscles. She washed the grime out of her two-toned hair and went over the events of the day. "Now I just hope I don't wake up in the morning to find it's a dream." She muttered as she rinsed the soap off her body and stood under the spray for another few minutes. Mary decided it would be best for her to get back to her room before she passed out in the water; that would definitely not be the best first impression.

She tiptoed through the dark hallways, wondering what kind of people were behind the doors she passed. When she arrived in her room she found Tabitha sitting on the edge of her bed flipping through a few of Mary's books. "Kinda creepy Kid." She chuckled as she tossed it back to Mary's side of the room. Mary rolled her eyes and fell into bed, not bothering to cover up. "Geez… you are tired aren't you." Tabitha said incredulously.

"Mmmhmm." Mary mumbled, her eyes already closed.

Tabitha did something very unlike herself; she left Mary be. She smiled warmly to the younger girl and clicked off the lights in the room. "Goodnight Kid…" The blonde whispered from the door as she shut it quietly and headed back down to the recroom to finish her movie.


	9. Chapter 9

**::Appears randomly:: Hello all! Yes…I'm not dead! And I decided to post due to a concerned reviewer ::snuggles::. I'm warning you… this chapter isn't my fav, but theres another one in the mix! ::Stares at bowl of nothing:: Ok! So its still in my head… somewhere! Please forgive me and enjoy the chapter which really shouldn't be considered one XD. **

**ldypebsaby:** Muahaha… Tabitha . She and Mary will cause trouble, never fear. But in this chapter it's mostly Tabitha's evil.

Brandy Lebeau: I love the minigoth comment . It made me giggle like a maniac when I randomly thought of it. It got me interesting stares! Yay for attention 

**Eyes of Brown: **Updated mon capitain!

**AnimeSiren: **Danke mon ami

**Agent-G: ** G I'm back!!! Thanks for forgiving me! And heh, sorry for the disappearing act . Rogue will definitely become a sorta big sister stereotype… but not so much o.O. But I'll get to that laters ::innocent grin::

**Dark Devotions: **Thanks for the compliments . She will freak a little today though!

Mary murmured and her breathing quickened. In her mind, memories were flashing before her eyes. In the blink of an eye, she was in another, evil world and saw red demons lunging at her. She screamed and turned away, terrified to watch the monster rip away at her flesh. When she opened her eyes again, snow-covered trees surrounded her. She looked around cautiously and was about to take a step when she heard a growl; she paused as the rumble was heard again and a feral looking man pounced out of the shrubbery. She dodged him and nearly face-planted in the snow but fortunately she used her tail to catch herself on a low branch. _"Wait…tail?" _She thought before the world shifted once more. She opened her eyes once again and realized she was in pursuit of someone. The girl in front of her was carrying a football and phasing through trees to avoid her. _"Kitty?"_ She guessed as she disappeared momentarily and reappeared in front of her friend and grabbed the football.

Mary turned and ran as Kitty chased after her; every so often she would glance over she shoulder to wave the football in Kitty's face. Mary snickered and turned to scan the path in front of her and saw the tree. She realized she was running too fast to stop so she did all she could think of: close her eyes and wait for impact.

**THUD. **Mary had rolled off the bed when she had hit the tree in her dream. "Whoa…" She mumbled as she looked at the clock; it was 5 AM. The two-tone racked her brain in an effort to remember more of her dream, but it was useless. She closed her eyes and sifted through the fragments she recalled. "Kurt?" She guessed when she saw a tail. She sighed, she was already experiencing the consequences from absorbing: the memories. Hoping she wouldn't relive anymore of Kurt's memories, or even worse…Tommy's, she crawled into bed and drifted off to sleep again.

Mary heard a faint tapping and she rolled over, not wanting to wake up yet. It stopped after a moment and Mary drifted back into a deeper sleep, only to hear muffled voices seconds later. With her eyes still closed she reached around and found a discarded pillow near the edge of the bed and threw it over her head. Silence. She sighed in content and burrowed deeper into the soft sheets. Little did she know there was a small battle going on outside her door.

"Come on Tabitha! We wanna see the new girl!" Amara begged.

"No way! She's sleeping. Let her rest for a while, she'll be down eventually." Tabitha replied as she stood firmly between the New Recruits and the door.

"Please Tabby? We won't wake her… we just wanna sneak a look." Sam explained as he reached for the doorknob.

"Farm boy if you touch that knob I'll kick you higher than the corn you used to grow." Tabitha threatened, her icy blue eyes flashing. To prove her point she stepped forward a few feet and pinned Sam against the opposite wall. She was about to threaten him again when she felt a strange sensation on her feet. She looked down to find her bare feet frozen in place. The blonde looked up angrily to see a smirking Bobby reaching for her door.

"Drake, I'm warning you." She said, a murderous tone in her voice. The younger boy didn't heed her warning as he began to turn the knob. Tabitha shook her head and rubbed her hands together, producing a few bombs more than needed.

**BOOM!**

Mary yelped and rolled off the bed. She looked around frantically in search of the origin of the explosion. She jumped up and scanned the room only to find Tabitha's bed unoccupied; a faint hacking was heard outside in the hallway and she saw smoke billowing into her room from the small crack under the door. Another small explosion was heard and yelling followed.

"ICEMAN! You froze my feet to the floor! Do you know how dead you are?" Tabitha's voice rang throughout the mansion.

"Hehe…well Tabby we tried nicely to-" Another voice tried to reason.

"NICELY? You call that nicely? Well fine! I'm gonna nicely kick your ass!" The blonde cut off. There was an ominous pause in which Mary held her breath. Seconds passed and nothing happened, and Mary was about to open the door to see what exactly was going on, but that became unnecessary. Her door flew open and three teenagers flew in followed by a, literally, steaming Tabitha, who was holding two handfuls of bombs.

"Look… she's already up… no need to try and keep us out now." A boy pointed out as he jutted his thumb in Mary's direction. He paused for a moment and smiled warmly to the new girl. "Hi there… I'm Sam Guthrie. Welcome to the-." He greeted, but paused as he saw Tabitha advance. "Well it was nice meeting you! I guess I'll see you later today!" He finished as he ducked past the blonde and ran down the hallway.

"Sorry Babe, I tried keeping them out. But someone froze my feet to the floor… and now he needs to die." Tabitha explained as she glared at the remaining boy. "Mary, this is Bobby Drake. He's also known as Iceman… at least that's what its gonna say on his tombstone." The blonde stated quietly. The brunette waved and in a flash he was gone, presumably after Sam.

Mary stared at the last girl. She seemed to be somewhat amused by Tabitha's anger and terrified at the same time. "Tab… now I didn't do anything." The dark skinned girl pointed out. Tabitha stared at her for a moment, as if debating to blow her into pieces.

"Yeah… you're Ok 'Mara." She agreed as she tossed hr bombs after the boys and slammed her door. "Mary, this is Amara Aquilla, one of the less annoying New Recruits." Tabitha introduced. Amara waved and stared at Mary with interest.

"So you're Rogue's sister? Like… blood? That's kinda cool… we always assumed she was an only child. I mean… there's Kurt but he's not blood related, and we thought that if Rogue ever had a sibling they would-" She paused as she realized she was rambling. "Umm…yeah… welcome to the Institute." Amara finished as she pulled her hair into a ponytail and glanced at the clock. 9AM. "Man I hope Kurt didn't eat all the breakfast." She sighed, heading for the door. "We're glad to have you here…I'll see you later!" She waved and started back to her room.

Mary scratched her head, somewhat confused about her wake-up call. She looked to Tabitha, who was sitting on her bed rubbing her feet. "So yeah… most days aren't like that I swear." Tabitha assured. "But hey…since you're up do you wanna get some breakfast? After that you can meet up with Rogue and we'll show you around." She asked.

"Sure." Mary yawned as she searched for clothes. She got dressed rather quickly and headed out the door before Tabitha had even gotten out of her Pj's. She passed one door and heard music blaring behind it, it sounded like Incubus… but she never got to find out seeing how the music suddenly stopped and was replaced seconds later by Ashlee Simpson.

"Kit…" An agitated voice called before the music stopped once again and Incubus took its place.

"Rogue!" A perky voice yelled before the music stopped and was replaced with Ashlee Simpson…again. Mary snickered as she realized whose room it was, and knocked softly. The door opened seconds later to see Kitty still in her Pj's. "Hey!" She welcomed as she opened the door fully and invited Mary in. The two-tone looked around and snickered; one half of the room was covered with dark clothing, posters of Incubus, Seether, Cold, other various rock artists, and scary movie posters… while the other side was barely visible under light colored miniskirts and tops, and pictures of 'hot guys'.

Rogue glanced up as Mary entered the room and smiled. "Goodmornin'." She greeted as she zipped up her jeans. "Do yah know what that explosion was earlier?" She asked as she turned her attention to her hair, which was sticking up at odd angles.

"Tabitha." Mary replied simply as she picked at her fingernails.

The two girls glanced at each other, but shrugged as if it was nothing unusual. Rogue saw Mary's reflection in the mirror and noticed that the girl had yet to cover her hands. Thinking quickly, she grabbed hers off her dresser and tossed them to her little sister. "Ah can't believe we forgot tah get yah a pair of gloves." She scowled as she pulled her hair into a ponytail, the white tresses hanging out. She dug around in her drawer and pulled out an identical pair to those she had just thrown Mary and slipped them on.

Mary pulled on the gloves and squeezed them to get a feel of the leather; they had been worn in and fit perfectly. "Ok… yah ready? Tha Professah asked me tah bring yah down for breakfast so yah can meet everyone else." Rogue explained as she surveyed her sister's attire to be sure there was no chance of her absorbing anyone. Mary was dressed in a black Hurley long-sleeved top and blue jeans with rips in the knees. She had on socks as well… so Rogue figured that Mary would be pretty well protected. "Kitty, yah coming?" Rogue asked. There was a muffled response that came from her closet that signified the girl would be a little while longer. "Ok… we'll meet yah down there." Rogue rolled her eyes as they sisters started for the door.

Rogue paused for a moment and walked over to their CD player. She snatched out the Ashlee Simpson disc, tossed it under Kitty's bed and blared her own new Deftones CD. "ROOOOGUE!" Kitty screamed. Rogue snorted and grabbed Mary's wrist and tore out of the room.

The two arrived down in the kitchen moments later, both chuckling. "Guten Morgen." Kurt waved from the table as he piled bacon and eggs onto his plate. He teleported behind them to the fridge to retrieve the syrup, and teleported back and began to smother his breakfast in the sugary topping.

"Ewww…Kurt." Amara made a face.

"Vhat? Its good! You should try it sometime." He nodded as he grabbed his fork.

"Ah, Mary…Good morning. I assume you slept well?" Xavier greeted as he rolled into the kitchen. Mary nodded. "Wonderful, and aside from the unexpected wake-up call this morning I'm assuming all is going well?" He chuckled.

"Yes sir." Mary replied with a small smile.

Xavier was about to make another comment when there was a disruption. Bobby stood up in a chair and tapped his knife against his glass. "In honor of our new arrival, I propose a day of celebration!" He declared, causing a cheer from everyone in the room, and even bringing a smile to Scott and Jean's face. "My and my dear friend Raymond," He began sarcastically. "Have already planned out our day. First, breakfast… and I see that is going according to our schedule." He said, making an imaginary check on a nonexistent piece of paper. "Second, our usual tradition for the newbies… which will take place immediately after breakfast. Thirdly… no training for anyone the rest of the day!" He finished, his last point causing a cheer to erupt from the room.

"Nice try Icecube… you still have training though." Logan spoke up from his coffee. Bobby looked defeated as he jumped off his chair. They finished breakfast a few minutes later, during that time Kitty and Tabitha finally showed up. Shortly after, they all headed out into the backyard near the pool and began their tradition.

"So… welcome to Mutant Manor, home to your teenage superheroes. I am Bobby Drake, also known as Iceman… as you found out this morning…" He began, taking a short glance at Tabitha, who was now tossing a bomb up and down. "Anyways… our tradition is this: Whenever a new mutant joins our ranks, we show him or her our powers… and help decide a codename if said mutant doesn't have one. After that… its usually a big party!" He explained. "So I'll go first. Watch this." Bobby smirked as his body coated with ice and he rose up on a tall pillar of frozen water. He stood proudly atop his tower and pelted a few students with snowballs.

"I'm Amara Aquilla… also known as Magma." Amara spoke up, obviously annoyed, as she wiped snow off her head and flamed up. She glared up at Bobby and pointed at his ice tower. Her hand glowed bright for a moment before a stream of lava shot out. It hit Iceman's tower and melted it instantly, sending Bobby into the pool.

"I'm Sam Guthrie… nice tah meet yah… you can call me Cannonball if you wanna." The blonde headed boy greeted as he jumped into the air and shot off like a rocket into a nearby tree. He stood up a little wobbly but waved to the rest of them to show he was Ok.

"Hi!" A small brunette greeted as he waved to Mary. He looked so happy to show off his powers, and Mary couldn't help but laugh. "I'm Multiple… but call me Jamie." He explained as he hit himself in the chest and four copies popped out and waved. "Welcome!" They all said in unison before they disappeared into the original body.

"I'm Sunspot, but please call me Roberto." A dark skinned boy addressed as he took Mary's gloved hand and gave it a quick kiss. Mary blushed and Roberto winked as his body transformed into something beastly. His new orange eyes glowed brightly as he walked over to the tree Sam had previously crashed into and lifted it from the ground as if it weighed nothing.

"**_Roberto's the flirt…think nothing of his Romeo ways."_ **A voice echoed in Mary's head. The young girl flinched and looked around to see Jean smiling warmly. **_"In case you were still wondering…I'm a telepath…as well as a telekinetic."_** The redhead explained as she raised her hands. Mary suddenly felt herself lifted off the ground. She panicked as she continued to rise, but realized Jean had control over the situation and tried to relax. The two-tone paused for a moment, and tried to contact Jean.

"_**What? You don't have a…umm…codename?"**_

"**_No…" _**A somewhat annoyed voice replied as Mary was lowered back down and set gently on her feet. She turned to look back at the group and when she did she nearly jumped out of her skin; before her stood a giant blue monster. He raised his hand and Mary closed her eyes in terror.

"Hello there small one. I'm sorry if my appearance startled you…there's not much I can do about it." A deep voice explained as Mary opened her eyes. She saw the giant beast smiling congenially as he took her hand and kissed it Roberto did. "I'm Hank McCoy, the residential science teacher and battle instructor. It's a pleasure to meet you my dear." He greeted as an older woman stepped up to him.

"I'm an instructor as well…my name's Ororo Munroe. The younger recruits call me Storm though." The white haired woman explained as her eyes turned pale and the wind began to pick up. Soon there were gale force winds and lighting striking nearby… and suddenly it stopped. Mary stared in awe and Ororo patted her on the shoulder and gestured for her to take a look at the remaining students.

It took a little over a half hour for the X-Men to display their powers, and when they were done Mary was truly amazed. _"I'm never gonna be able to make it here… my power's not even useful, at least theirs can be used for something…mine's only good for destruction." _She began to doubt as she squeezed her hands.

"Hey Mary." Rogue whispered in her sister's ear as she rapped an arm around her. "What do yah think?" She questioned with a lopsided smile. Mary was about to reply when Bobby once again spoke up.

"Now…for a codename. Mary, did you have one in mind?"

Mary paused and looked around at the crowd of teenagers and instructors. They waited patiently for an answer and Mary looked deep into their eyes. In every single pair there was a welcome. Even distant Logan's stare had a tint of sincere care. Lastly, Mary turned to her sister. Marie's eyes were filled with hope and happiness, although she was trying to mask it. Mary assumed that Marie was never really a happy person… and the new cheerful emotion was new to her and she didn't know quite sure how to handle it. "Well?" Marie asked hopefully.

Mary thought for a moment; she wanted something similar to Rogue, seeing how the two were so similar. She chuckled mentally when she thought about it: Rogue and hers first person to absorb was a jock, in both situations they were in a place they would normally have never been, they had both run when they discovered their powers… _"And we both absorbed Kurt." _ She finished with a small grin. Racking her brains with words that were similar to Rogue, Mary closed her eyes for better concentration.

All was quiet for a few more moments before Mary spoke up. "Scamp."

"Scamp?" Scott inquired.

"It means mischievous…" Mary began to explain.

"I do believe it's a synonym of rogue." Hank chuckled.

"Well… I believe that fits perfectly." Charles complimented, causing Mary's already pink cheeks to turn a shade brighter. "Mary Dawson…Scamp, welcome to our family…welcome to the X-Men."

**BAH. I dun like this chapter. It goes NOWHERE! But yeah, another chapter is in the progress, but I'm not sure where to take it after a few paragraphs in ::Cries::. I'm so incredibly sorry it took so long to get _this_ ::Glares:: posted… but hopefully some time will open up in the future.**

**Peace! God Bless all!**


	10. Chapter 10

I have returned from oblivion! I know I do these disappearing acts; I'm working on managing my time better in the future so I don't disappear on y'all! I had help on this chapter too cause I was having major writers block, but thanks to a dedicated reader that won't happen again anytime soon! … Hopefully at least. But, I would like to give special thanks to Agent-G! Who totally rocks and has awesome plots for RLS. I would also like to thank him for e-mailing me whenever I take long disappearances; that reminds me to get back on track.

**Lets not forget my other readers though!**

**Dark Devotions: **Thanks for the review! I'm diggin' all the compliments!

**AnimeSiren: **merci beaucoup! J'espère que vous aimez ce chapitre aussi bien!

**Fudje: **Thanks a lot Fudje! I guess the chapter wasn't so bad after all, I mean, she does need a codename!

**DreamSprite: **Yes! I got a good work compliment. That so totally roxxors XD!

**Fireinu: **Thanks for the compliments! I'm trying to stay on schedule and write more now.

**SickmindedSucker: **Maybe Amy and her parents could visit sometime in the future! I'm thinking of trying to work that in somehow. I'm a Romy fan myself, and I'm totally glad that you love the story despite the lack of Romyness!

**Brandy Lebeau: **I wrote more! And I'm glad you thought it was funnyI guess it coulda been considered the most pointless chapter… but it at least provided some comic relief.

**Devil's lil imp: **Well it took me a little longer to get the chapter up, but it's finally here!

**Agent-G: ** Ok, Rogue can put her hair into a ponytail, but it's a low ponytail. Not like Kitty's! It would be kinda stubby too. But its possible, and I think she would do it to get the hair outta her face. Oh well hehe.

Chapter 10

The next day, Mary was convinced to survey the Danger Room sessions so she would be able to see the obstacles she would be put through. She stared on in awe from the control panel as the X-Men fought in the Danger Room. Their skills individually were remarkable, but when they worked at a team they were amazing. It was obvious they were in tune with each other, it seemed as if they could anticipate each other's every move.

"Exciting isn't it?" Hank chuckled as he typed in a code on the keyboard as to raise the strength of the beam fired from lasers on the walls.

Mary snapped to attention at the comment; she had forgotten he was there. "Umm… yeah." She agreed meekly as she watched her sister duck behind a wall to avoid being hit. The session today was simple, seeing how it was the weekend. But to Mary, it was one of the most grueling things she had ever seen. "Oh… ouch." She winced as Kurt was slammed into the wall trying to disarm a laser.

&&

Rogue squeezed her eyes shut as Kurt made impact with the wall. He hung there for a moment before sliding to the ground in a heap. "Kurt?" She called, but there was no movement. She glanced around and saw the other X-Men occupied with disabling the guns, or in Kitty's case unconscious. Fortunately, Rogue had dragged her roommate to safety behind the wall where she was presently. The two-tone turned looked to the unconscious girl and back to Kurt. "Well…" She sighed as she pulled off her glove. The only reason Rogue was behind the wall was because she didn't have much of an active power… at least not one that could battle lasers.

Her pale hand caressed Kitty's face, and began to absorb her. Both girl's inhaled sharply, and Rogue removed her hand and replaced her glove. She placed her hand against the wall she was behind and pushed, happy to see it disappear into the steel. Glancing once more at her teammates, she charged through the wall and to her brother.

"Kurt! Get your ass up!" She called as she dropped down next to him and shook him. There was still no response from the elf. She heard the faint high-pitched whine of the gun revving up to charge and she looked around to spy a laser targeting her and Kurt. Thinking quickly, she phased them both as the beam rocketed for them. It shot through their bodies as though they were ghosts, and Rogue shook Kurt again. "Come on Elf!" She yelled. There was still no response, but his tail did flip a bit.

"Sorry Kurt." She sighed once more as she ripped off her glove and grabbed his tail. Rogue heard the whine again of the gun and quickly teleported the two back behind the wall. "Ok… are y'all comfy? Good." Rogue muttered as she laid Kurt next to Kitty and teleported up to Scott, who was desperately trying to hit vital wires on a nearby shooter.

"How many more after this one?" Rogue demanded as she appeared in a puff of smoke. Scott didn't flinch, and his face was set in determination.

"Jean's handling the other one, this will be the last if we can just disarm it!" He replied as the two rolled to avoid getting hit. By the time Scott had gotten back to his feet, Rogue had teleported up to the giant gun. She located a loose panel after a moment and yanked it away to reveal many multicolored wires. She reached in and grabbed a handful and jerked them out of the machine, causing it to flail about wildly. Rogue tried to hold on, but when the gun made a 360-degree turn she was flung off and thrown towards the ground at an incredible speed.

She didn't have time to teleport, not that it would have mattered. Rogue had learned that you kept the momentum you had while teleporting. All she could do was curl into a ball and hope the impact wasn't as horrible as she thought it would be.

**Thud**.

The impact was cushioned by something, and Rogue peeked open her eyes to see what. "Heh, nice catch Scott." She thanked the older teen.

"No problem," Scott wheezed. "But can you get off me please?" He asked. Rogue hopped up and grabbed his arm to help him. Scott stood and wondered what the odds were that Rogue would have landed on top of him when she fell. He knew they were astronomical… but of course it's logical it would have happened then.

"Are you Ok?" Rogue asked.

"I'm fine." Scott assured as he looked at the gun, whose flailing had now subsided. Its fierce beams were now reduced to low frequency, and looked quite pathetic. Cyclops sighed in relief and set his visor to full blast, and thereby nearly knocked the gun off the wall.

"Well, that like made my Saturday perfect." Rogue perked up very Kitty-like as Jean landed next to them, her face glistening with sweat.

"At least it's over." Jean smiled as the blockades around them disappeared into the Danger Room floor, exposing a somewhat conscious Kitty and Kurt. "You two Ok?" Jean called. The two looked over and nodded meekly before standing slowly.

&&

"See? Now that wasn't so hard was it?" Hank chuckled as he typed in a command and shut down the simulation.

"_Is he kidding me?"_ Mary thought. After what she just witnessed, she highly doubted she would be any good for missions. Sure, she was known to get into fights, but this required actual skill in battle. These weren't high school scuffles. "Yeah, right." She muttered as she saw the team file out of the Danger Room. Moments later, the elevator door pinged and Rogue entered the control room alone.

"Tha others wanted to head for the showers." She explained as she walked over to where Hank and Mary stood. "How were we today, Mr. McCoy?" The southerner questioned as she rubbed her sore back.

"Aside from Kurt being thrown around and Kitty being knocked unconscious, I say you did quite well." The older man praised with a sly grin before turning to Mary. "My dear, would you like to try a test run before you begin training with the younger recruits?" He asked suddenly, hoping to catch her off guard enough so she might comply.

Mary was indeed caught off guard, and stumbled over her words for a moment. "I… Danger Room?" She began, stopping herself before she started babbling. "I don't think I can… I mean… I'm not used to fighting really." She explained.

"No one really was before they came here." Rogue countered. "Sides, Ah'm telling yah right now its better tah start off alone than for your first session tah be with Bobby and the others." She warned.

Mary exhaled deeply. She knew she would have to train sometimes. The Institute wasn't a free ride. Rogue was probably right. It would be better to do it now and get a feel for fighting before she was thrown in over her head with the New Recruits. "It's not going to be anything like…that. Is it?" She asked nervously as she looked down at the remains of the previous Danger Room session.

"Heavens no. You won't be at that level for a while. Since you are beginning, I suppose we could have a simple run. How would you feel about running a gauntlet? You would start here," Hank began as he pulled up a screen on a nearby monitor. His fuzzy, blue finger pointed at one end of the maze, and traced its way throughout the labyrinth to the end. "And end here." He explained as he tapped the screen. "Of course there will be obstacles, but it won't be anything that you shouldn't be able to handle." He assured, tearing his eyes away from the glowing display and peering at her above the rim of his glasses.

Mary looked at the screen futilely and nodded. "Ok then!" Hank smiled, his pointed teeth flashing. "Rogue, could you show Mary to the locker rooms for a uniform? By the time you return the session will be ready." The older man explained as Rogue grabbed the crook of Mary's elbow and led her out of the control room.

"Ready Mary?" Rogue's voice called from the headset in Mary's ear. The new recruit nodded and gulped as she stared at the walls looming in front of her. "Relax… it's not gonna kill yah. Just keep focused." Her sister comforted as a buzzer sounded, signaling the start of the run.

Mary began slowly into the maze, keeping her eyes out for anything suspicious. Moments later, she rounded a corner to be nearly electrocuted by bolts of lighting shooting from one side of the maze to another. She was about to backtrack when she realized she had already dashed past one of the beams of electricity, which had now solidified into one solid wall of lightning. She turned around and felt her skin prickling from the nearness of the current. "Nothing I can't handle?" She muttered into her headset, her voice higher pitched than usual. There was no response, probably because of the electrical interference. She waited a few moments, trying to calculate the pause between the bolts fired. "Ok, I've got a 2 second interval to get my tail through this." She muttered. She waited for one more shot, and then took off.

She made it to a clear space between two bolts, and then repeated her run 3 more times before clearing the trap entirely. Her headset fizzled, and came to life. "Good job, my dear! I told you it wouldn't be anything you couldn't handle." Hank congratulated shortly as he watched her cut around another corner of the maze.

"Ok, so this isn't that hard!" Mary cheered to herself. She continued along her path at a steady clip for a few moments until she ran into her next obstacle. In front of her stood a team of two extremely unpleasant looking men. They weren't hulking monsters, but they looked as if they had spent a bit of time in the gym. The first one looked over and smiled to his gang before he slowly advanced.

"Mary, don't be afraid of these two, they're simulations. Don't take that lightly though, because they can still do damage." Rogue's voice called over the headset. The two-tone nodded and gulped as the man loomed over her, and then grabbed for her. She ducked under his hands and he spun around, a scowl plastered on his face. His hands balled into fists and he swung, missing Mary by mere inches. He continued his advance, and backed Mary into the nearby wall.

"_Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit."_ Mary winced as her silent opponent raised his fist once more for the final blow. He slammed it down… right against the wall where Mary's head once was. Mary, meanwhile, was crouched on the floor trying to regain her breath. As the man doubled over to cradle his hand against his body, Mary swung up unexpectedly, and connected with the man's jaw. His head snapped back and he hit the ground and lay unmoving.

The last man took his cue from his teammates fall and came at her, fists swinging. Mary blocked and ducked as much as she could, but was finally smashed in the cheek by an undetected swing. She fell to the ground, stars twinkling in her eyes while she tried to regain her sight. The man wasted no time and jerked her up by the scruff of her uniform, his skin precariously close to hers. _"Wait… I've got these powers, why not use them!"_ Mary had gone brain dead and had forgotten completely about her powers. She ripped off her glove and grabbed the man's round face. His eyes rolled up into the back of his head, and he collapsed, taking Mary with him.

She lay on top of her attacker's limp body, trying to catch her breathe before she started up again. She heard a faint moan from the man who had attacked her first, and decided not to stick around any longer. She picked herself up and sprinted down the hall she was in, only slowing down when she was a good hundred yards away. At last she came to what seemed the end of the maze. In front of her was a pit with a narrow beam across it, and beyond that a staircase that led to a door she assumed to be the exit. Thinking all danger had passed, her spirits lightened and she stepped onto the plank and looked down. Below her, about ten feet down, were large steel spikes. Even in the dim light, she could tell they were needle sharp.

Mary's breathing increased and she made her way quickly but carefully along the slim board and made it across the cavity safely. She took a step up the staircase slowly, in case she had triggered a trap. Satisfied that she had completed the mission successfully, she began to run full speed up the steel stairs. She had almost reached the top when the staircase folded into the ground, leaving Mary trying to run up a metal slide. She slipped, and began to painfully roll backwards down the slope and straight for the pit. Mary no longer felt the ground and knew she was falling, her body aiming straight for those spikes. She screamed, and seconds later hit. She expected herself to be skewered on a spear, but instead found herself on the ground. The spears had disappeared. She hadn't been skewered, but she had landed pretty hard on her shoulder. "Ow." She cried feebly, not wanting to move.

She heard hurried footsteps on the ground moments later, and she curled into a tighter ball, expecting it to be the men she had encountered earlier. "That's the first lesson a being an X-Man." Rogue's voice called out. "Always be on guard, there's surprises everywhere." She explained sympathetically as she jumped into the pit next to her sister. Mary looked so pathetic: her cheek was split, and slowly turning a nice shade of black, her hair was sweaty and matted against her forehead, and she was curled into the fetal position. Rogue hesitantly reached her hand out, unsure of what to do. She gently wiped the hair away from Mary's wound, and rubbed her sister's arm while she typed in a code on a hidden keypad in the wall. The pit suddenly began to rise to ground level, and Mary stood shakily, leaning on Rogue for support.

"I thought you said it wasn't anything I couldn't handle?" Mary muttered as they reached to doors to the Danger Room.

"I didn't say that, Hank did." Rogue pointed out. Mary didn't respond, but snorted instead. Rogue steered herself and her sister towards the med lab to find Hank waiting for them.

"I must say you did particularly well for your first try." Hank commented as Mary set down on a nearby examination table. "You just need to keep an eye out for surprises." He added as he poured iodine on a gauze and applied it to Mary's cheek. Her eyes watered due to the stinging sensation, but she refused to pull away. Hank perked a brow. _"So much like Rogue… she refuses to show weakness. And you can tell her pride has been wounded due to the defeat, and she's not too pleased by it." _ The doctor thought to himself as he pulled the gauze away and applied a liquid bandage to the wound. He opened a nearby drawer and produced a sling for Mary's arm. "I'm assuming its been sprained, if not dislocated. I could try to-." He began, but Mary pulled away as he reached for her arm.

"I don't think it's dislocated. I just landed on it pretty hard." Mary assured him as she extended her arm to prove herself.

"As you wish, but I would like you to wear the sling for at least a day to let your arm heal." Hank prescribed as he slipped it over her head and secured her arm. Mary wiggled her arm to make it more comfortable in the sling, and slid off the table.

"Thanks Dr. McCoy… I guess I'll see you around. Hopefully you'll be at the next Danger Room session? I would really like to beat a session you set up." Mary smiled.

"Certainly, my dear. Now, you're free to go. Have a nice afternoon." He smiled as he held the door open for the two girls. They exited the med lab and headed for the elevator.

"Yah see, it wasn't that bad." Rogue assured as they stepped into the elevator.

"Wasn't that bad? Did you see me fall?" Mary replied in disbelief.

"Ok, it was a little rough for your first session, but yah did pretty well!" The older girl defended herself.

"I fell backwards down a slide and almost got myself impaled." Mary retorted as she tucked her white hair behind her ears.

"It could have been worse." Rogue assured her after a moment.

"Worse? How?" Mary asked, obviously not believing her.

"It could have been Logan dictating the session." Rogue smiled as the doors dinged open and she sauntered out, heading for the patio doors and leaving Mary standing there contemplating that possibility.


	11. Chapter 11

**Yesh! I return once again. And for my late-ness I bring Cookies! Yay for cookies XD. Anywho… I uploaded 2 chapters this time… YAY again.**

**REVIEW TIME!**

**Mourning Star Under The Moon: **Thanks for the pointer! I'll be sure to work that in more.

**Vasdrkangel: **Danke! I appreciate the review

**Brandy Lebeau: **I'm glad to hear I'm keeping her real! Last thing I want is a Sue 

**Multifan: **Yes! Agent-G helped me with the DR session. It's not the first time writing one, its just the first time writing someone else's first time o.O lol.

**SickmindedSucker: **Woo! I'm glad you liked this chapter! Lol I love battering Mary around! It helps take out my frustrations XD!

**Agent-G: **THANKYOU! Lol you're an awesome dude!I would prolly be stuck still without you! I brought Amy into this chapter a bit, and I plan on bringing her in more in later chapters. I'm glad you're a fan!

God Bless y'all! And ON WITH THE STORY!

&&&&

Mary stepped out onto the patio and into the bright afternoon sun later that day after her Danger Room session. It was a beautiful afternoon; the sun was shining, the sky was a deep shade of blue with only a few clouds splotting it ever so randomly. It was a somewhat warm day, but there was a light breeze gently cooling off anyone who happened to be outside, as well stirring the giant oaks surrounding the mansion… it was a picnic perfect day.

That is, until, Bobby and a few of the other New Recruits stormed pass her, heading straight for the pool. "Cannonball!" Sam yelled at the top of his lungs as he jumped up, activating his powers, and slammed into the surface of the calm water. The impact sent water everywhere, including where Mary was standing a good many yards away. She spun around instantly, blocking every part of her except her back, which was then soaked. She sputtered and turned around angrily, her wet hair clinging to her face.

"_I just had a shower… I didn't need another one."_ She thought as she popped her neck. It was a habit she had picked up over the years- whenever she was stressed she would crack her neck. It relieved tension. "Insane weirdos." She muttered as she stalked off in the direction opposite the pool. The new mutant was still somewhat ticked about failing her session. She had been doing perfectly until the end… Ok… close enough to perfect. She at least hadn't made any dire mistakes! She had just gotten too cocky, and that pissed her off. Mary plopped down next to a large oak tree and leaned against the rough bark, wincing a bit as she jarred her arm. "And this is what cocky gets you." She scowled as she looked at her injured arm that was still resting in her sling.

"Hey Mary!" The two-tone heard a call. Mary didn't have to look over to know who it was: Tabitha. Trying to avoid the bombshell, Mary slid over to the other side of the tree so she was hidden from the occupants of the pool. Hopefully Tabitha would take the hint and go back to enjoying the sun and pool.

…But this is Tabitha we're talking about. The blonde peeked her head around the tree with a quizzical look on her face. "Minigoth?" She questioned, trying to lighten the mood. "What did you do?"

"Nothin' Tab."

"Like hell you didn't! Come on! You know you wanna tell me." Tabitha heckled.

Mary perked a brow and sent a glare quite similar to one of Rogue's 'Death Glares'. It was something the Southerner had become somewhat famous around the mansion for. If one was given to you, it was considered wise to back away and just leave Rogue… and now in this case Mary… alone. Once again, this is Tabitha. The glare had no effect on the girl, and Mary sighed.

"I just screwed up my first Danger Room session. I'm kinda pissed about it." Mary admitted, looking away.

"That's what you did? I thought you had called Logan and pansy or something." She chuckled, before taking notice of the expression Mary was wearing: uncertainty and embarrassment was etched into her face. "Ah, don't worry about it Babe. Everyone's first time is always rough. Actually, on one of my first sessions I almost killed Blue boy! At least you didn't do that!" The blonde consoled. "And think of it this way: next time I'll be there with you! We'll be a great team. Nothing will stop us!" She cheered, shooting her fist up into the air.

Mary set there in contemplation. So not only would her next session most likely be with Logan, it would be with Tabitha as her partner. Was Xavier trying to kill her? Mary knew Tabitha had good intentions… and she thought Logan did too. But still, those two were a little out of her league at the moment.

"…Thanks Tab." Mary gave a feeble smile.

"Anytime! Now, let's get back to the party! We're having one more swim before fall gets here and we close down the pool." Tabitha explained as she grabbed Mary's covered arm and dragged her back into the sun and near the edge of the pool deck.

"Umm…Tabitha, I can't exactly swim at the moment." Mary said hastily as she jerked her arm away from the blonde and backed away from the splashing water. Tabitha gave a wry grin and tossed a handful of bombs into the water. Mary's eyes widened and she about-faced and ran as quickly as she could given her sore condition. Unfortunately, it wasn't fast enough and she was soon drenched in chlorinated water.

"Hell spawn blonde!" Mary screamed before ducking into the house to change once again. Tabitha's mission had been accomplished though; she had gotten a smile on Mary's lips.

After once again changing, Mary plopped down on her bed, bathing in the sunlight streaming through the open balcony doors. After a moment of staring at the ceiling, contemplating what she could do next, a thought struck her. Mary hadn't contacted Amy since her arrival. Knowing Amy, her imagination would have gotten carried away, and she would begin to believe the government, or something like that had kidnapped Mary like that. Mary set up in an instance and decided to call Amy as soon as possible.

"Now… if I can only find the phone." She muttered before slipping off her bed and heading out in search of one.

After much consternation, Mary located a phone hidden under a stack of pillows in the recroom. She hesitantly dialed the number and waited for a connection.

_Ring…_ _Ring…Click. _"Hello?" Amy's soft voice greeted. She sounded tired and somewhat downcast.

"Hey chica." Mary smiled, Amy's voice soothing her from even hundreds of miles away. There was a sound of shuffling, as if the phone had been dropped and the handler had had a difficult time picking it back up.

"Mary?" Amy asked in disbelief.

"The one and only." Mary replied as she situated herself on the couch.

"Babe!" The other girl exclaimed. "How are you? Where are you? Is everything going Ok?" She spat out questions in rapid fire.

Mary snorted; she knew it was going to be a long, long conversation. It was one she needed terribly though, so she figured she could pay back the Professor later for long-distance fees.

Two hours later, Amy stood speechless. "So… you're up at a mutant _Institute_ in New York? And there's all these mutants running around with insane powers? Plus a training room that would probably beat anything the government had? … Dude." She sputtered, causing Mary to chuckle.

"That's about it… You'll have to visit sometime. I'm sure you'd fit in with a few of the students up here." Mary nodded before emitting a large yawn.

"You're tired."

"Am not."

"Yeah, cause that's why you're yawning."

"…Shut up, Forest."

"Nevah!" Amy cried triumphantly. "We'll keep in touch. I'll let you get on now… Love you babe."

"Love ya too… God Bless." Mary replied as she set the receiver back on the charger. That had definitely made her day better. She was happy to know Amy had missed her. Sad though, because she missed her dearly. Mary would definitely make a point to ask the Professor if Amy could visit.

Just as the two-tone was walking through the foyer to head up the stairs, Tabitha and Rogue came storming down the staircase. Or, Tabitha was storming down the stairs with Rogue in tow.

"Mary! Just the babe I was lookin' for. We're headed to the mall to stalk around. Wanna come?" Tabitha greeted as she released her death grip on Rogue.

"Umm… I'm not sure. I'm not really dressed for going out, and I am kinda tired." Mary began, but was silenced.

"Aww babe! How do you think you're going to learn your way around town if you don't get out any? Besides, I'm sure you can change quick enough right? Roguey here and I will wait on you." The blonde assured as she stepped aside and waited for Mary to head up the stairs.

Mary stared at her pointedly; this would make it the fourth time she would have changed today. Did Tabitha not understand that it was difficult for her? She sighed and passed Rogue, who had crossed her arms and was shaking her head.

"Sorry for this… but if Ah have tah suffer tha blonde, Ah figure we could suffer together. It won't be so bad." Rogue assured, but strangely enough didn't sound so reassuring. Mary just smiled faintly and headed to change… again.

Moments later, Mary came back down the stairs, dressed in a blood red top and dark blue jeans. One thing lacking from her attire was her sling. Rogue perked her brow and issued a 'what the hell do you think you're doing' stare.

"I don't need the sling. I can just not use my arm." Mary said hurriedly as she walked out the door, her arm cradled against her torso.

"Ah should make her put it back on." Rogue muttered.

"No way, she's already in the car. She can leave it off tonight… nothing big is gonna happen." Tabitha assured as she headed for the door. Rogue sighed and pulled out the keys to Jean's car. The redhead had lent them her car for the night, seeing how she wasn't going anywhere and they needed a ride.

The two-tone tucked her hair behind her ears and started out the door, knowing well it would be a full night with Tabitha with them.


	12. Chapter 12

Rogue's greenish-gray eyes scanned the food court for any signs of activity; it had been a trait picked up soon after joining the X-Men. She never knew when trouble could spark in an area, so she chose to keep a close watch on everything so she would be the first to see the disturbance and not be taken off guard.

There were no disturbances tonight, thankfully. Tonight, there was nothing but love-struck teens sharing fries and milkshakes, or parents with small children in tow. The mutant shifted in her seat uncomfortably as the food-court began to get a little crowded. Crowds were still not one of her favorite things, even though she had meager control over her powers. She still felt as if she were a disaster waiting to happen to the unsuspecting people of Bayville, even though most people had seen her face on the news and now recognized her as a mutant and tried to steer clear.

Mary plopped down unexpectedly with a smoothie in her hand. "I think I ditched Tabitha in the crowd." She stated as she scanned the swarm for her roommate.

"She'll make her way back. She has a knack for finding people." Rogue assured, her eyes still scanning.

Mary noticed the lack of emotion in her voice, and saw that her sister was more focused on something in the crowds of people. Speaking of crowds though, Mary was extremely thankful she had worn her long sleeves and gloves. In Alabama, the stores were never as crowded as this. Mary had bumped into God knows how many people… she was beginning to understand why Rogue never went out much. With their powers, they were too much of a risk. The two-tone stared out into the crowd as well, trying to locate the point of Rogue's interest, but she found nothing out of the ordinary. "What are you looking for?" She questioned curiously.

"Nothin' in particular. Just looking." Rogue assured before she tore her attention away from the mass of people and stared at her sister. "So how'd yah lose Tabitha?" She asked, mildly amused.

"I dunno. I guess I just slipped through the crowd. I'm short… short people have a tendency to get through crowds a lot faster… we duck under the arms and elbows." Mary elaborated as she saw Tabitha elbow her way through a line of people waiting to order and make her way towards the sisters. "Or you could do it like Tabitha." She snorted.

"Geez… you think people would move when they see you coming." Tabitha said in disbelief as she sat down.

"They were in line, Tabitha, yah could have gone around." Rogue retorted.

"Why would I have done that?" The blonde replied, nonplussed.

Rogue sighed in annoyance and shook her head. "Ah don't know. Never mind."

The trio ate their dinner without much disturbance beside the wailing babies coming from a nearby toy store. "I'm disappointed, tonight's a slow night. I was hoping for some action." Tabitha announced as they stood to leave.

"No way… Ah'm glad for a peaceful night for a change. Ah'm sick of running Danger Room sessions every other night, and the days we're off havin' tah train tha New Recruits. They're insane." Rogue responded as she grabbed her trench coat from the back of her chair.

"Hey…I'm in the New Recruits." The blonde responded with a huff.

"Mah point exactly." The older girl replied with a wry smile. "Besides, you'll probably be moving up in ranking soon… so chill. You'll be experiencing mah stress sooner or later."

Tabitha, Rogue and Mary headed towards the mall doors, window-shopping along the way. They were mere feet from the door when they heard someone scream. "Hey! Come back with my wallet you little punk!"

The girls spun around to see a small, pasty-faced teen bounding for the doors. "Toad." Rogue growled under her breath.

"Our old roommate. He's a member of the Brotherhood: a lame group of mutants that like to cause a bunch of trouble. They're fun to hang out… but being a member is pretty sucky. They had an insane shape-shifter for a boss… but now it's a white-haired jerk." Tabitha explained in a hushed tone to Mary as the boy came closer. She and Rogue stood their ground in front of the doors, creating a sort of barricade. Mary, on the other hand, had been pushed to the side to avoid injury.

Toad was a few feet away when he realized who was blocking his exit. He skidded to a stop and gave a broad smile, showing very unhealthy teeth. "Yo! Tabitha. How's it going?"

"Great Toad. How about you? I see you're in the pick-pocket line of work again." Tabitha replied sweetly while forming a few cherry bombs in her hands.

"Aww… come on Tab! Just a few wallets! The Brotherhood's gotta eat!" He whined.

"Then get a job!" Rogue cried exasperated. Toad looked at her as if she had just grown an extra head.

"No way yo! Anyways, gotta run! Mall security's gonna be here in a few seconds." He disagreed as he jumped over their heads and out the door. Rogue growled in annoyance and turned to follow him out, Tabitha and Mary following behind her.

"Toad! Yah coward! Get back here and face me!" She yelled. Toad turned and spat a green slime at them, which fortunately fell short and only further angered Rogue. She was for some reason strangely aggressive tonight. Perhaps it was the fact that all she wanted to do tonight was stay home with a good book and her headphone; instead she was dragged out to the mall full of screaming babies and discriminate people. Plus, Toad had pissed her off extremely.

"Dammit." He muttered as he continued his flight. He had always been intimidated of Rogue and Tabitha. He knew the goody-goodies wouldn't let him get away with a few men's wallets, and he knew he had little to no chance of beating the two of them. He had to make it back to the jeep where Lance and Blob were waiting, and then he could let those two do the fighting.

"Yo! Lance! Little problem here!" Toad called as he neared the truck. Lance looked up from the magazine he and Blob was leafing through. The brunette scowled and hopped out of the car, Blob following shortly after.

"Rogue… please? Come on! We need the cash. It's not like they don't have more!" Lance argued when Toad hopped in the car. Mary had stopped a few yards back as Rogue and Tabitha made their way over to the car.

"No, Lance. Give me the money… now." Rogue demanded, her famous glare present in her eyes.

"Sorry Rogue, I can't do that." Lance replied angrily as he sent a small tremor that knocked them on their backs.

"Dammit Lance!" Tabitha screeched as she threw a handful of bombs at him. They landed at his feet and exploded, sending him flying into Blob. The larger boy caught him and set him down. Lance glared at the girls and stamped his foot on the pavement; it began to vibrate slowly but then began to quake with the force of a good-sized tremor. Mary stumbled to keep her balance, which was very difficult with the light pole that she was standing near falling over as well. Mary fell over, and soon after the lamppost did as well. It missed the girl by a few feet, and Rogue quickly spun around to see what the commotion was.

When Rogue saw the accident that had nearly taken place, she became enraged. She was up in an instance and had slammed her fist into Lance's jaw, she was not in the mood to use her powers and have Lance in her head for a few hours. He grabbed his face and stumbled back, muttering curse words as he went. "God, Rogue! It's just a human! She's fine." He defended himself.

"That's. Mah. Sister." Rogue snarled with the ferocity of a mother lion defending her cub. Lance, Blob and Toad stared at her, extremely confused. "Yeah, yah heard me." Rogue assured them before taking another step towards Lance.

"If I were you, I'd run." Tabitha called, a smile plastered on her face. She figured out a while back that Rogue was fun to tease, but it was insane to actually piss her off… Lance just did. (Sucks for him.)

Lance saw the look in his former teammate's eyes and decided it would be the best time to leave. He nodded to Blob, who charged and slammed into her at a speed surprising for his bulky frame. Rogue went flying and landed a few yards behind Mary in a crumpled heap. Lance, Blob and Toad took the opportunity to flee back to the Brotherhood house.

Mary and Tabitha saw Rogue land and rushed over to the incapacitated girl. "Rogue? Are you Ok?" Mary whimpered.

"Ah'm fine… Assholes ran away didn't they?" She asked as she sat up.

"Of course." Tabitha snorted as she and Mary pulled Rogue up. The two-tone was having difficulty walking, and leaned on Mary for support while Tabitha went to fetch Jean's car.

"So was that the welcome wagon for Bayville?" Mary joked.

"One of them at least." Rogue smiled faintly. "Try and steer clear of them… its hard tah tell if they'll get violent or not sometimes. Ah mean… we go tah school with them… Kitty kinda dated Lance. It's hard tah think if them as enemies." She shrugged painfully.

"So you and them are friends?" Mary asked incredulously.

"On good days?" Rogue replied, not sure herself. "Ah used tah be a member. They were Ok guys… not very organized though. They're fighting's kinda choppy and they have a hard time communicating. That was only 3 of tha gang though. Pietro and Wanda Maximoff weren't present. They're probably tha more dangerous of tha group."

Mary stared at the now deserted road the Jeep had driven down. "So why were you part of the Brotherhood?"

"Mystique had tricked me intah thinking the X-Men were the enemy. Ah was only with them a month or two… Ah didn't even really fight tha entire time Ah was with them. Ah'm just glad Ah got out." Rogue replied as Tabitha pulled up with the radio blaring.

"Ok! Let's go. I'm driving!" She exclaimed as she rolled down the window.

"How can you be like this all the time?" Mary asked.

"Like what?" Tabitha responded as Rogue climbed in the back, and Mary hopped in the front.

"Insane." Mary answered as they sped down the street.

&&

"Rogue, I can't believe you confronted the Brotherhood alone!" Scott reprimanded. Rogue had just returned from the Med Lab, where she had a few bandages put on minor cuts and scrapes on her body. Scott had set her, Tabitha and Mary down on the couch in the rec room to give them a stern talking to.

"Ah wasn't alone. Tabitha and Mary were with me." The two-tone replied smugly.

"A lot of good that did you too. What if you had been seriously hurt? Mary was almost flattened too!" He continued on, his glasses flashing in the dim light.

"Look, Scott. Ah understand yah care. Ah appreciate that too, really Ah do. But there are going tah be circumstances in which the entire team won't be there when something happens. Tonight was a good example of that. We handled it tha best we could, and no one was seriously hurt. Ah should have been on better guard, but Ah wasn't. But we're fine! So drop it!" Rogue replied, the tone in her voice signifying she no longer wished to talk about it.

"Fine." Scott sighed as he uncrossed his arms, signifying that he was sorry for snapping at them and giving them a cue to either leave peacefully or speak up. Rogue took her cue and headed for her room. It had been a long day, and she was tired. Mary waited a few moments and then followed suite. As she walked down the dormitory hallway, she paused at Rogue's door and knocked. She heard a muffled reply and assumed that was door for 'come in'.

She pushed open the door to see Rogue with her headphones on and a book in her lap. Mary plopped down on Kitty's bed, her arm still cradled against her body. "So." She began.

Rogue tugged out the earpieces and raised a brow. "So what?"

"Are you really Ok?" Mary asked.

"Ah'm…fine." Rogue replied somewhat coldly. But she wasn't really. Her pride had been wounded along with her leg. She hated being beaten. _Hated it. _Lance was going to pay when she saw him next time. She would make sure she personally ripped his long hair out and shoved it down his throat. "Don't worry about it. Ah'm just kinda ticked about it." She assured. "Ah just guess Ah was being a little too overprotective of yah and Ah let mah guard down." She smiled.

Mary shifted. So it was her fault Rogue had gotten hurt. "I'm sorry." She muttered.

"Don't be. It wasn't anyone's fault." Rogue assured before yawning.

"You're tired… I guess those painkillers are knockin' you out. I'll let you sleep." Mary offered as she stood to leave.

"Thanks… Goodnight Mary." Rogue called as Mary walked out the door.

"Night! Sleep tight." Mary replied before heading to her own room and falling down flat on her bed, not caring to turn off the lights. "Today wasn't fun." She muttered to herself before rolling over and staring at the ceiling until sleep overcame her.

A few minutes after she fell asleep, the balcony doors flew open, and a breeze ran softly through her room. Pietro Maximoff quickly grabbed the doors before they banged and alerted anyone else he was here. He was sure the Professor had already noticed his presence, but it would take him a few moments to pinpoint his exact location. Pietro needed to confirm something quickly and leave before Wolverine stormed up and gutted him.

He tiptoed over to Mary's bed and stared at the younger girl's features. He hadn't believed Lance when the boy had told him Rogue had found her sister, and decided to take it upon himself to discover the truth. It had been a breeze bypassing the security; he was so fast the detectors couldn't sense him. The only problem he had encountered was finding the right room. He knew the girl's dormitories overlooked the backyard, but that was about it. He saw a light on in one room, and thought it would be best to start there. Fortunately for him, he had chosen right the first time.

"It can't be possible." He muttered as he fingered a few strands of her white hair… looking for a sign that it was dyed. Not finding one, he studied her face. She had Rogue's nose and ears… but her chin was a bit rounder. "I'm sure Magneto would find this interesting." Pietro muttered to himself before turning and speeding out the door once again. Mere seconds later, Logan opened the door swiftly but softly and peered in. Everything seemed as it should, but one sniff of the air proved otherwise.

"**_Yep Chuck, he's been in here. Why do you think the little brat would have broken in and not done anything?"_** Logan thought to Charles, who was sitting in the study.

Xavier propped his chin on his fingertips and tried once more to pinpoint the boy. While he wasn't able to find his exact location, Charles discovered that he was nowhere present on the grounds. _**"I don't know Logan, but he's left the grounds. There's not enough information yet to notify the students, the most it would cause is worry. I suppose you may as well leave before Mary wakes and finds you searching around her room. Thank you for checking on her."** _He informed Logan.

Logan snorted in disgust as Quicksilver's cologne wafted into his nostrils. He quickly scanned the room again for any signs of disturbance, and quickly walked to the balcony door and locked them. He was about to exit when a thought crossed his mind. "_What if he comes back?"_ He highly doubted that a locked door would stop the persistent mutant. Logan looked around for some sort of barricade, upon finding nothing that met his criteria; he grabbed a nearby chair from a desk in the room and jammed it under the latch. He knew the chair would be little more effective than the lock, but at least it would alert the girls to his presence. Glancing once more out the windows, he left quietly and returned downstairs to finish his dinner.


	13. Chapter 13

**Ha! It so didn't take me months to get the next chapter up. Muahaha… My plot thickens. And it only took 14 chapters! Woo! Lol. Ok! Shoutout to all my reviewers!**

**Agent-G:** AHHHH Don't pop your knuckles! Lol I HATE that sound! (I pop my neck too… but my doctor actually told me to stop or I could severely damage something o.O) And it didn't take me that long to get TWO chapters up! Are you proud? You know you are 8D.

**Multifan: **Mary feels she can trust Amy with anything, so she's gonna tell her pretty much everything. And actually, I haven't been able to keep up with Agent's AGU series, I barely have enough time to do homework these days (is stressed like whoa). And you gotta understand that I'm all about chaos! I'm gonna fit it in when I can .

**Howlerdude: **See comment above about the whole chaos thing lol… of course Pie's gonna cause trouble.

**Fireinu: **Let's just say Tabitha didn't appreciate the chair lol.

**Brandy Lebeau: **Thanks chica!

**Ooook! On with the story mah peoples!**

&&&&&&&&

"And you're sure of this?" Magneto demanded from his son.

"Like I said, I didn't believe Lance so I checked it out for myself. Rogue definitely has a sister." Pietro replied impatiently from his seat. Eric sat back in his chair, his brows drawn together in thought.

"_I must say this comes as a shock. Mystique never mentioned this to me, is there a chance she didn't know of the child?"_ The older man thought to himself before concentrating on other things. _"That's not the point though. Maybe now my plans will follow through as intended. If we could just get our hands on the sister, Mastermind could alter her memories to make her believe she was betrayed by the X-Men and joined our side…" _His thoughts trailed off when he realized his son was still present.

"Yes?" Eric inquired.

"You haven't paid the bills for the Brotherhood. They're complaining that we don't have any food or power." Pietro explained disdainfully.

Eric sighed. He had hoped that Mystique would have taken in the members of the Brotherhood and trained them to be skilled fighters like Charles' students were. Unfortunately, Mystique had failed, and the team was very uncoordinated and quite pathetic at times. That is why he had founded the Acolytes. They were a much better team, although they did have their quirks.

"Alright, I'll write a check." He agreed, hoping to get his son to leave so he could begin to work out the details of his plot he had long since thought had become impossible.

Moments later and Pietro was gone, hopefully back to the Brotherhood and not out to spend the money Eric had just given him. "A sister." He said aloud, his mind calculating each move it would take to capture the girl. He meant no harm towards the child. His original plan had involved Rogue and he had planned to have Mystique train her and then hand her over to Magneto and Mastermind. Once Rogue was in Magneto's care, he would have her mind altered to further the illusions that the X-Men really were the enemy, thereby ensuring that the girl would remain faithful to Eric. He had arranged to develop her abilities so that she could recall the powers she had previously absorbed on command, making her one of the most potent mutants on the face of the earth. With her on his side, the X-Men wouldn't have been as much a challenge as they were now.

Unfortunately, his plans had hit a stumbling block when Rogue joined the X-Men. Eric had still kept his hopes up that he might capture the girl and alter her mind, but he soon realized that would be impossible after the episode with her powers. Once Charles had helped her put the 'psyches' back in order, Eric realized that her mind was incredibly strong because she had learned to lock away the psyches in her mind. To do this required great mental strength, and Rogue had achieved it. To try and alter her mind would have required too much force on her brain and would have led to serious mental damage, rendering her useless to him. But now, he had another chance.

"_Siblings usually have similar powers. If the sister's powers are anything like Rogue's, she will be a valuable member of the team. The child must have recently come into her powers as well. This means that she may not have absorbed many mutants yet, and the psyches in her head will be few. The fewer the psyches, the less chance of a breakdown with her powers occurring soon. Hopefully Charles hasn't learned from Rogue's history and begun a training of some sort to build up mental shields against her psyches, and thereby unintentionally building up a defense against strong telepaths as well. If I can set Mastermind on her before Charles begins strengthening her mind, my plan may at last come to pass." _ He hoped to himself as he paced around his office. "But how…" He paused as he stared out the window into the wilderness surrounding the Acolyte compound. "Do I get to her without Charles suspecting anything?" He finished before racking his brain for the answer.

He knew he would need someone to infiltrate Xavier's watchful eye over his students and get the child. It would take time; Charles would become suspicious if one of his students disappeared shortly after a new face had arrived. No. Whoever he sent must be patient and gain the trust of those at the Institute before snatching Mary away suddenly. Whoever he sent must be trustworthy, and willing to follow his every order. Eric ran through his list of options.

"Gambit? No… He's too old and would most likely be flirting with Rogue the entire time. Damn Cajun. Colossus? No… He's just as old as Gambit. It would be too suspicious." He immediately emitted Pyro and Sabertooth as well, knowing that they would become impatient and be found out before long. Eric lulled over his few remaining options for some time before coming to a conclusion. His choice seemed unlikely, but wasn't impossible.

"Now I just have to convince Pietro to go along with my plans." He sighed, knowing his son would protest the mission.

&&&&

Mary had been trying to avoid Tabitha for the days following the incident at the mall. The next morning, Tabitha had awoken Mary with the story that Mary had jammed the balcony door that night and Tabitha couldn't get in after she had snuck out again. Mary had denied the accusation, but Tabitha pointed out the chair. It was all confusing to Mary, and Tabitha had it firmly planted in her mind that Mary had done it on purpose… and now it was time for revenge. It was playful revenge, Mary was sure, but she still didn't want to find any of Tabitha's bombs in her breakfast.

As Mary walked down the girl's corridor, she heard Tabitha humming to herself as she came up the stairs. Thinking quickly, she slipped into Kitty and Rogue's room… hoping to find her sister. "Hey Mary!" Kitty greeted cheerfully as she dug through her desk drawer. It wasn't Rogue…but at least it was someone partially sane.

"Hey Kitty." Mary smiled as she heard Tabitha walk pass the door. A wave of relief washed over her as she heard the blonde walk into their room. "Whatcha up to?" She inquired as she saw the brunette tossing out papers.

"School starts back in a few days, remember? I'm like, trying to figure out what supplies I need and get them before everyone here rushes to the mall." Kitty explained as she pulled out a fluffy pink pen and set it on the tabletop.

A pang of fear rushed through Mary. "School?" That single thought brought forth painful reminders of her last few days at Greenville High. The bullies, the teachers… God how she hated school. "Mary… chill… it's a new beginning here. No one knows anything about you… how bad could it be?" She tried to calm herself, but there was still that distinct feeling of dread.

"Ok!" Kitty said after a moment. "I know what I need so I think I'm going to go ahead and get it. That whole rush before school just isn't cool around here." She explained as she grabbed her purse and started for the door. Mary stepped aside and as Kitty grabbed the doorknob, her eyes lit up. "Maarrry." She said in her valley-girl voice. Mary perked her brow. "Have you gotten school supplies yet? Or clothes for school?" She asked, knowing full well Mary would say no.

Mary began to reply, but was cut off. "No? Now's the perfect time! Come on!" Kitty practically squealed in delight. Mary barely had enough time to run with her before she was dragged down the hall.

&&&&

Mary shakily stepped out of the X-van as Kitty pulled into the mall parking lot. Mary had been warned of Kitty's driving, but hadn't experienced it first hand. She watched in shock as Kitty hopped out and walked to Mary, a smile on her face. Once the brunette saw Mary clinging to the side-mirror for stability, her face changed. "What's wrong?" She asked.

"You phased through a bus." Mary replied softly.

"Well! It was either that, or like, hit the thing." Kitty defended.

"You shouldn't have had to do either! That's why they're called stop lights Kitty… they tell you when to STOP." Mary pointed out breathlessly.

"It was so yellow when I went through it." The older girl defended as she crabbed Mary by the crook of the elbow and led her towards the mall. "Ok, so we can easily grab school stuff at the parent teacher store… or something like that. I want to work on your wardrobe so you won't be a spitting image of your sister." Kitty explained as they walked through the sliding doors into the air-conditioned building.

"But… I'm not a spitting image of her. She's pale… and wears a lot of gothic make-up. And she's tall." Mary pointed out obviously.

Kitty perked an eyebrow in amusement as she took in Mary's appearance. She realized Mary was on her way to being pale; she was spending way too much time indoors. Not that Kitty could blame her, it had been warm and muggy outside lately, and with Mary's powers she didn't want to risk absorbing anyone and therefore wore long clothing most days. Long sleeves and humid weather didn't go well together, and Mary was reduced to staying indoors most days, rarely venturing out to see the sun. "At least she isn't wearing the gothic make-up. Like… only Rogue can pull that off I think. Maybe this year I can get her to wear less of it though, she's really pretty without it." Kitty thought to herself as she noticed the dark eye shadow that darkened Mary's eyes.

"Don't even think about wearing the dark makeup. It so wouldn't work to have two Rogues in the house. I would like, have to get onto her for being a bad role model for her sister… and she's really not that tall." Kitty thought for a moment. She came up to about Rogue's nose… so she guessed Rogue was about 5'8. Kitty was 5'5… She looked to Mary and realized the girl was just vertically challenged. "You're just short… don't worry about it." Kitty giggled as they headed in the store for supplies.

Twenty minutes later, they left the store, purchases in bags by their sides. "Ok! Now for the real shopping! Let's do you first… I've already gotten a lot of my things a few days ago." Kitty explained, her smile broadening every second.

"Umm…" Mary began before she was whisked away again. "God help me… if she tries to make me buy pink…" She didn't have time to finish as she and Kitty stormed through the crowd and into a nearby PacSun…

&&&&

Hours later, they exited the mall. Mary looked as if she were weight lifting with all the bags she was carrying, while Kitty only held a few. Kitty hadn't tried getting Mary into any of the stores she shopped at, and instead went to a few of the places she knew Rogue was fond of. She had expected that she might have to drag Mary away from all the dark gothic attire, but found that the girl wasn't really interested in most of that. In fact, despite what Kitty had previously thought, Mary and Rogue were more different than it seemed.

It seemed that Mary had tendency to lean towards the more punk line of clothing, although Kitty didn't see much of a difference between Goth and Punk. She had also realized that Mary was a bit warmer to strangers than her sister was, but she had a tendency to flinch away if they made any sudden movements. Kitty knew of Mary's parental situation, and understood that the flinching must have come from that. "I can't believe some people… they have no idea what the do to the kid's psyche." She inwardly scowled. And maybe on a more unfortunate note, she noted Mary's sarcasm was a lot fiercer than Rogue's. Rogue usually glared, scoffed, and scowled to make people avoid her, and only use sarcasm as a last resort. Mary, on the other hand, glared and would make sarcastic remarks. Kitty had experienced it first hand a few days ago, but thought nothing of it until now. "I like, suppose I should be happy she's not a carbon copy… but I need to figure out which sister is worse to get on the bad side of…" Kitty realized as they tossed their things in the backseat and hopped in the car.

Mary yawned as they started down the road for home. "So… are you ready for classes to start back? You're lucky… by the time you got here, it was like, almost Thanksgiving break. Professor didn't want to start you just yet so you got like, an another entire month off." Kitty smiled warmly.

The two-tone chuckled a bit, realizing though that she would have make-up work later. "I guess I'm ready to get back. The first few days there y'all were at school… I was left with books and Logan for company really. Once Thanksgiving break hit, y'all were around too much and I felt like strangling half of the New Recruits. I think school is the middle ground I need." She smiled, feeling that sense of dread returning slightly. "But… is there any information you can give to a new sophomore?" Mary asked hopefully.

Kitty thought for a moment, then smiled. "Just avoid Duncan. He's Jean's ex and a real mutant hater. That… and he's like, just a jerk in general. And if you're in Mr. Ruthig's class, make sure you pay attention; he has a tendency to crack down super hard on the kids who don't. Stick with Tabitha and Amara really… they'll watch out for ya." Kitty explained as they pulled up to the gate of the Xavier Institute and spied Amara in the side yard, flame shooting from her hands as she tried to barbecue Ray.

"… Are you sure they'll protect me?" Mary asked hesitantly.

"… More or less." Kitty said sweetly, hoping she was right.


	14. Chapter 14

Mary nervously followed Rogue down the hallway of Bayville High School. It seemed as if the past few days had gone by too quickly, and school was upon the inhabitants of Xavier's once again. She tried to ignore the stares of the other students who found interest in the two almost twin-like girls, and hurried to catch up with her big sister.

"Ok… well here's tha office. Yah just need tah wait in here until tha office ladies can get yah your books and schedule." Rogue explained as she held the door open to the office. Mary nodded and Rogue noticed her glance around uneasily and she smiled. "Do yah want me tah wait with yah?" She offered.

Mary would have happily accepted the offer, but as she opened her mouth the warning bell rang, signaling straggling students that they had 3 minutes to get to class. "No… No I'm good. Go ahead and get to class." She assured her as she waved goodbye and stepped into the office. She walked up to the desk and waited patiently for a few moments while the secretary was on the phone. After a moment, the lady looked up and smiled before gesturing for her to sit down for a few minutes so she might finish up the call.

Mary knew she wouldn't be able to sit at the moment… she was too nervous. Instead, she tossed her backpack in the chair and leaned against the wall and tapped her foot. She glanced around the office and took in the décor. The walls were a creamy yellow, with a few potted plants in random areas to give the room a more comfortable feel. The two-tone looked to her right and nearly fell over from shock. Next to her was a mirror, and her own appearance had frightened her for a second. Once her pulse returned to its steady beat, she looked again at her reflection. Her hair had been pulled into a low ponytail, the white streaks left out framing her face. She wore a bit of dark eyeliner, and that was it for her make-up.

Her clothes, on the other hand, were ones she had purchased with Kitty a few days back. She wore a black corset under a sheer blood-red top, and of course her gloves. The top allowed her skin to breath during the day without the danger of skin-to-skin contact. Rogue had suggested it, and Mary had taken up the idea but altered it a bit so she wasn't dressed exactly like her sister. She wore a black leather miniskirt and dark red stockings and her black Converses. She grimaced as she turned in the mirror and spied her thighs. "I can't believe I wore this before I started exercising." She scowled as she pulled her skirt down a bit in an effort to cover her legs.

"Ms… Dawson?" A voice came from behind. Mary spun around and blushed as she saw the secretary staring at her. The two-tone grabbed her bag and headed towards the desk to receive her instructions. "Here's your schedule. To get to your first period, turn left after you exit here and it's fifth door on the left. You can pick up all your books in your classes." The pudgy lady explained before handing a slip of paper to her. "This is your locker number, 626. To get to it, take a left out of here and it's on the top row a few yards down. Here's the combination for it." She smiled warmly. "Welcome to Bayville High School… and good luck."

"Thanks ma'am." Mary said, greatly relieved to see that not all the faculty members were mutant protestors. She turned and was headed for the exit when the Principle's door opened suddenly. Mary jumped and spun around at the sound and spied a very unpleasant looking man staring at her.

"Ms. Dawson, please accompany me to my office." He said coldly before standing aside and holding the door open for her. Once again, that sense of dread returned and was magnified. She entered his office, not glancing at the man as she did so. She spied a chair and set down in it, nervously picking at the tips of her gloves.

"So, Ms. Dawson. I just wanted to clarify a few things with you before you started your term at Bayville High. I am Principle Kelly." He greeted, his eyes showing none of the warmth the secretary's had. "I understand you're from the Xavier Institute, correct?" He started in, not giving any time for Mary to respond to his… introduction. She opened her mouth to speak, but he continued on anyway. "From what I understand, many of the kids who are here from Xavier's are… special." He explained. She saw a flicker in his eyes and she knew that he meant mutant… or more accurately, 'mutant scum'.

"Yes, sir." She nodded.

"I assume you're… 'special' as well?" He pried.

"Sir, if you're inquiring if I'm a mutant… yes. But I don't see how that would matter… I'm still a student." She answered him, becoming disgusted at his racist views. He said nothing for a moment, but perked a brow at her answer.

"You better get to class, Ms. Dawson. We don't need you getting into any trouble this soon in the year." He said, his voice colder than she had heard it so far. She flashed a cold glare, but complied and exited the office and went off in search of her first period class, unknown that other cold eyes were watching her.

&&&&

Pietro Maximoff stood behind a pillar near the wall and peered at Mary. _"I can't believe I'm forced to do this."_ He complained as he watched her walking away from him. He took in a few more of her features that he had missed the night he had first seen her and realized that she was short… but she had a nice figure. He smiled wryly as he saw her hips sway while she walked. _"She'd be nice arm candy…and she will be for a period of time until I get her to father." _ He thought to himself. He saw her pause in front of a classroom and peer in the window before knocking softly. He waited until she entered the room before coming out from his hiding place and speeding off himself to his first class of the day.

&&&&

Mary was relieved to have people she knew in her first few classes. She had just finished lunch, and was on her way to 5th period. So far, she had had each class with Tabitha, Amara, or even Kitty. For once, she was thankful she excelled in science and was able to be in a higher-level class. But now, as she walked into her Literature class, she realized she knew no one here. She handed her slip of paper to the teacher, who nodded and supplied her with the book they were reading in class, and an assignment she needed to complete. Mary turned to face the class, and realized that she was required to be somewhat social in this class; instead of desks, there were tables that seated to apiece.

Mary's eyes scanned the room and saw teenagers chatting away with each other, almost all the seats taken… except for one table near the window. It was empty. She made her way quietly to the seat and smiled softly at her other classmates, who waved or nodded in response.

"Alright class! Where did we leave off yesterday?" The teacher asked as class started. No one replied. It seems it didn't matter what state you were in; any class after lunch was dead. "Oh come on you all…" She sighed in frustration as she grabbed the marker off the tray and began to write on the white-board. "We had just begun 'The Great Gatsby'. We enter the story with Tom, who is the apparent narrator of the story, but not the main character. In a few chapters later, you will see his personality mirror what he has just said in the opening paragraph, but for now you don't - " She was cut off as the door opened suddenly. The teacher turned and saw a teenager walk in the room. "Mr. Maximoff, late again I see?" She asked him.

"Sorry teach… I got a little hung up at lunch." He explained before heading for Mary's table. Mary's breath caught for a second, as apparently many girls' did. Their heads turned ever so slightly as the silver-headed boy walked past their tables. Obviously, he was one of the boys the girls fawned over… and Mary saw why. He was tall, and had an amazingly fit figure. His eyes are what caught Mary's attention though; they were a brilliant shade of blue, and seemed to be sparkling. She adverted her attention when he sat down as to not look like an idiot.

Pietro stared at his mark. Mary seemed nervous, and he saw he blush when he began walking towards her table. _"This is gonna be easier than I thought." _He chuckled to himself as he sat down next to her.

She felt his gaze on her, and she shifted uncomfortably. "New?" He whispered. Mary nodded in return, barely glancing at him as she tucked her two-tone hair behind her ears. "I'm Pietro Maximoff… and I haven't seen you in any of my other classes today." He introduced.

"I'm Mary Dawson… and I was placed in this class because I'm well versed in literature. I'm only a sophomore." She explained to the junior. In the back of her mind, something struck her about the name, but she couldn't place it. She tried to shove the thoughts out of her mind, and figured that it was nothing.

"One of the smarter ones apparently." He winked before returning his attention to the teacher. Mary was thankful for this, because she began to blush deeply. _"Yep, a whole lot easier than I thought." _He thought to himself again.

After class ended, Pietro followed Mary out into the hall. "You know, you remind me of someone." He piped up.

"Really? Who?" Mary asked as she headed for her locker.

"Another junior… I have a few classes with her. Her name's Rogue. You two have the same hair… do you know her?" He asked, watching her eyes flash as she heard her sister's name.

"Umm… yeah. Actually I do. She's pretty cool if you ask me. Are you and her friends?" She asked, hopeful that if they were she would be seeing him a bit more instead of in only one class.

"Sorta, we belong to two very different groups though. We used to hang out, but not so much anymore." He replied, not exactly lying but not being totally honest as well.

"Oh." Her voice fell. They reached her locker and she tossed her books in. Pietro was about to ask another question, but was interrupted by the girl he least wanted to see at the moment.

"Pietro." Rogue greeted warily as she stepped around him and stood next to her sister.

"Hey Roguey. We were just talking about you. How's it hangin' at the Institute?" He asked nonchalantly, trying to disguise the annoyance in his voice as interest.

"It's great Pietro. We ran intah Lance and tha others at tha mall a few nights ago… where were you?" She asked, daggers in her voice.

At last, the name clicked in Mary's head and she drew back ever so slightly. So, this was the infamous Brotherhood member? From what she understood, they were always on opposite sides… how could it be that they could be congenial at school? She looked to her sister, whose focus was on the teenager in front of her.

"Lance and them? Gah, petty thievery is below me Roguey. You should know that." He grinned before turning to Mary. "I only go for the beautiful stuff." He winked at her.

Rogue's eyes narrowed into her infamous death glare, and Mary was sure that if looks could kill, Pietro would be dead where he stood. "Stay away from her, Pietro." She warned him.

"Rogue, I was just walking her to her locker. There's no harm in anything. Why try and protect her from nothing?" Pietro asked, wondering if she would declare their relationship in front of him.

"Don't yah dare act like yah don't know. Yah live with Toad. Tha second he got back from the mall he would have informed you what had happened. She's mah sister, Maximoff. Stay away from her. Anytime yah get involved in anything, trouble ensues." She said maliciously. Mary did **not** like the tone in her sister's voice, and became anxious to get away from the both of them before something happened. She backed up a bit slowly, and they both turned their attention to her.

"I'm sorry Mary… it seems I've troubled your sister. I'll go before I cause anymore trouble." He apologized, effectively wrangling in his pride momentarily. He looked back to Rogue and sent her a withering glare. "And no, Rogue. I had no idea you had a sister. I don't always listen to Toad's ramblings. I'm glad you found one another… sisters are always great fun." He lied, his mind flashing to Wanda. He turned and walked down the hallway, turning the corner a moment later and disappearing from their sight.

Mary's eyebrows rose in slight fear of her sister. Rogue continued to stare after him, but instead of the earlier rage radiating from her eyes, it was confusion and distrust. "Rogue?" She asked hesitantly. Rogue turned to face her, and her gaze immediately softened.

"I'm sorry." She immediately apologized while glancing over her shoulder. "Ah just don't trust him, Mary. Ah never have really. Ah don't want him tah get anywhere near yah." She explained.

Mary looked after him. She didn't see anything dangerous about him. He seemed sweet, and he was kind of cute. Ok, he was incredibly sexy, but Mary didn't want to admit that she was beginning to crush on the X-Men's enemy.


	15. Chapter 15

HEAD'S UP! My last two chapters scared the hell outta G lol… So. Just to assure you others who may not be so happy about this, trust me. There will NEVER be a Mary/Pietro couple as long as I'm around. Ever. Ew. No. We clear? Get it? Got it? Good . P.S- yes, this was uploaded for G's peace of mind.

Mary didn't have Literature class the next day, and barely saw Pietro around the halls. If she did per chance see him, she never had enough time or courage to go up and talk to him. She wanted to ask what went on between him and her sister for such an animosity to be between the two, but she was afraid that if she did, the same animosity would form between herself and him as well.

She snapped out of her daze when a paper ball bounced off her the side of her head and landed on her desk in front of her. She jumped and looked to her side to see Tabitha twirling her pencil in her hand innocently. Right. Like Tabitha's ever innocent. The two-tone glanced up at the math teacher, who was busy reading a book at the front of class, and picked up the paper ball and unwrapped it.

_Last class of the day girl… then it's weekend! Perk up. We're going out tonight. _

_P.S. Yes, I'm making you go. No complaining._

Mary perked her brow at the letter and waded it up and chunked it as indiscreetly as she could at Tabitha's head. It bounced off and landed in her bag and she stuck out her tongue. Mary followed suit, and by the time the final bell rang, they were pinching each other unbeknownst to the teacher. They both stood to leave, and Mary effectively won the battle by flicking Tabitha in the nose and dashing out the classroom.

Due to her height, she was able to duck below many elbows and she was near the exit before she slammed into a body. "Hey! Vatch it!" An annoyed voice chastised. Mary looked up to see Kurt at his locker packing up for the weekend.

"Kurt!" She exclaimed before he grabbed her arm and pulled her up. By this time, they had gained the attention of a few other students. "Want to do a favor for your darling little sister?" She asked, pleading with puppy eyes.

"Sure thing, sis." He smiled, patting her on the head.

"Get me outta here before Tabitha gets me!" She begged. "Teleport us." She whispered to him. His entire demeanor changed, and he looked around to make sure no one had heard her.

"Mary… no one here knows I'm a mutant. They've only seen Nightcrawler, not Kurt Vagner. Ruhe, schwester." He whispered. "I'm sorry. I can't help you right here… and you might vant to run for it." He added as he heard Tabitha coming down the hallway.

Mary gave him an apologetic look and continued on her way. She ran out onto the campus and looked around. Neither Jean or Scott were out here at the moment, and they were the only two who drove today. She couldn't take the bus; they had been prohibited from the bus since the mutant discovery, and while Mary wasn't assumed a mutant yet necessarily, word had gotten out that she lived at the Institute and she had been somewhat avoided since then. Not that it mattered to her, the less people around her the less likely she was to be found out as a mutant. So, being without a car, without a bus, and without any other mode of transportation, Mary stood there, waiting the inevitable.

&&&&

Pietro sped down the hallway, stirring up a breeze around the normal humans who couldn't even see him. _"At last! The weekend! No more of these losers who aren't even worthy enough to eat my dust." _He thought cockily as he sped through the heavy wooden doors and nearly plowed into Mary. _"AGH. Just what I needed. I've avoided her all day without using my speed. Now that she can't even see me is the time I run into her. I hate this. Damn my father for making me do this. Damn him." _ Pietro scowled as he ran around Mary and stopped suddenly in front of her. "Hey there." He greeted mere inches from her face.

Mary was shocked, to say the least. She knew Pietro was a mutant, but she had never seen his powers. She stumbled back and tripped over her own feet, effectively making an idiot of herself in front of the few students outside. Luckily for her, Pietro had sped back around her and caught her in his arms. "Careful there." He chuckled as he pushed her back up. "I missed you today… how are things going?" He asked, mentally killing himself for having to be so congenial to an enemy.

Mary stood there, wondering how he could randomly appear like that and pretend like it was nothing out of the ordinary. "How… you… where'd you come from?" She sputtered.

"Super-speed. I can be here one second," He paused as he sped around behind her. "And here the next." He explained as he tapped her on the shoulder.

Mary looked around her and noticed that other students were staring at the mutant. "Does that not bother you that people know you're a mutant and look down on you because of it?" She asked, tilting her head so her hair shielded most of her face from their glares.

"Why should it bother me? I'm proud of what I am. Let's face it. Mutants are just the next step in the human race, and everyone else is just going to have to accept that one day." He said loudly enough for many to hear him. His voice was prideful, and somewhat shocked Mary.

"Well…yeah… I guess." She agreed softly. "But I don't think I'm ready for everyone else to know I'm a mutant. I'm new here… I don't need a bad rep this soon." She whispered to him.

"_Finally… I can figure out her power. Hopefully it's nothing like Rogue's and I can go back to wooing all the other hot girls in school… not this stupid sophomore." _He thought to himself while putting on a face of interest. "Mutant? I knew you were related to Rogue… but that doesn't always mean you have a power… will you tell me what it is?" He asked hopefully.

The two-tone paused and looked around for eavesdroppers. "You know Rogue's power… right? It's the exact same as that, but I don't know how to control it at all yet." She replied as she subconsciously tugged at her gloves.

Pietro could have died right there. _"So much for dumping her!"_ He thought angrily, his cold blue eyes flashing. "That's cool. I hope I don't get on your bad side with a power like that. You could lay me out flat if you really wanted to." He grinned, stepping back to gain a few inches between them. Mary noticed this and gave a sad smile.

"Yeah, so you better not piss me off anytime soon." She joked before stepping past him and heading in the direction of the Institute.

"Hey! Where are ya going?" He asked her, catching up with her easily.

"I'm getting away from Tabitha. She's pissed." Mary explained, not slowing her pace.

"I don't think you're going to get away from her going that slow." He pointed out.

"Well… do you have any better ideas? I can't drive and I can't wait on anyone who can." She told him.

"_I need to gain her trust sooner or later… here's a good way how." _He sighed to himself as he scooped her up in her arms and sped off to Xavier's Institute.

"What are yah doing?" She yelped as she wrapped her arms around his neck instinctively to keep herself from falling. She looked down and saw the ground rushing past her at an incredible speed and she shut her eyes in fear.

Pietro chuckled at her reaction. "I'm getting you home quicker. See? No Tabitha for miles. It'll give you time to run." He answered as he set her down at the gates of Institute. "I better not hang around here… that Badger of yours will be on me in a second. I'll see you around Mary." He said quickly, not giving her time to thank him or chastise him, and sped back down the street and to the Brotherhood House.

Mary stood flabbergasted. She didn't even have a chance to react before he was gone, and she was left standing at the gates alone. "I'll…see yah." She said, her accent drawn out from fear. She shook her head and punched in the codes to open the iron gates and walked inside to get ready for tonight.

&&&&

Back at the Brotherhood House, Pietro paced. "Why me?" He asked Blob and Todd, who had chosen not to go back to school.

"Why what?" Toad asked, taking his attention from the sitcom on T.V.

"Magneto wants to recruit Rogue's sister. Who do you think he demanded do it? Me of course. I don't see why he couldn't do it himself. He's got those metal orbs of his; he could just swoop down and get her at school one day. But does he? NO!" Pietro ranted speedily, but somehow Todd was able to keep up.

"Well… maybe he wanted to get the Brotherhood doing something, yo. Sides, he probably doesn't want the blame on him once she does disappear." Todd shrugged before turning his attention back to the T.V.

Pietro scowled and kicked an empty pizza box at his housemate. Todd yelped and jumped, narrowly missing the projectile and landing on Blob's shoulder. "Chill, yo! It's not gonna kill ya!" Todd exclaimed. Pietro glared in response and stormed up the stairs to his room.

He kicked his door shut and flopped down on his bed to stare at the ceiling. He stayed like that for a while, until his cell phone rang. He sighed, knowing whom it was, and pulled it out of his jeans pocket. "Hello father." He greeted.

"Pietro." Came a curt response. "Well, how are things progressing? Have you learned anything of any use?" Magneto demanded.

"Actually yes. Mary has the exact same powers of Rogue. No control, and I highly doubt she's absorbed many people at all. That means - " He was cut off.

"I know very well what that means. No psyche's, the lesser the chance Xavier would have started developing her powers." Magneto interrupted.

"Yes… and I also learned Rogue is extremely protective of her. If I make a misstep before the initial capture, I could be looking at a coma." The speed demon spat disdainfully.

"Well, hopefully for you, you will watch where you step." Magneto responded. "Keep up the work, Pietro. Don't fail me again." He said before hanging up.

"Nice chatting with you too, father." Pietro scowled again before shutting his phone and sitting up in bed. He knew he needed not fail this mission. Magneto was not one to be trifled with, and his past failures with the Brotherhood had not made him happy at all. Pietro was speeding on thin ice with this one. He also knew the other side of the mission. If he were to give the X-Men any reason to suspect he or Magneto had kidnapped the girl, they would be on his case in an instant. Rogue in particular. Pietro shuddered to think of the consequences of angering each side.

"What have you gotten myself into now, Quicksilver?" He asked himself.

&&&&

Mary couldn't stand it any longer. She had to know one good reason why she shouldn't trust Pietro, because she was well on her way in doing so. She had finished dressing for tonight with Tabitha, and she some time to spare before they had planned on leaving. She walked next door and knocked lightly. After a moment of no answers, she went downstairs in search of her sister. She nearly plowed over Sam at the bottom of the stairs, and grabbed the handrail to steady herself.

"Oops… sorry Mary." Sam apologized as he balanced a few Cokes and a bowl of popcorn in his arms.

"Its cool Sam… hey… have you seen Rogue around?" She asked, hoping he would know.

"Umm… last Ah checked she was in the library." He replied before continuing onto the Recroom, where many of the New Recruits were. Mary paused, trying to remember which way was the quickest to the library, and started off to find Rogue.

&&&&

Rogue reclined on a couch reading her novel, cherishing the peace of it all. Not many ventured into the library during the day, and even fewer at night. This was her one place to find a break from the hustle and bustle of the Institute.

She looked up when she heard something stir towards the door, and saw her sister peering into the dim library. "Mary?" Rogue called, grabbing the girl's attention.

"There you are." Mary breathed a sigh of relief as she walked towards the older girl. Rogue scooted over and gave Mary a place to sit, and she accepted the offer.

"Where are you off tah tonight?" Rogue inquired, taking in Mary's apparel. She was wearing her black corset, with black and red striped arm socks, raggedy jeans and her black converses.

"Tabitha wanted to take me out… she told me living here and going to school didn't count as a social life." Mary replied, tugging at her gloves.

"She tried that on me too… after a while Ah stopped payin' attention." Rogue snorted, and then realized Mary had probably sought her out for something. "Was there something yah wanted? Or did yah just get lost again?"

Mary hesitated, but decided knowing would be better than not. "I… I was wondering why you and Pietro… Why am I supposed to stay away from him?"

Rogue's eyes narrowed. "Why?" Her voice wasn't exactly welcoming.

"Well… When you blew up at him yesterday he wasn't doing anything wrong. We were just talking." Mary replied, noticing her sister's tone and becoming nervous.

"Mary… Pietro is Magneto's son. Magneto… in case yah forget… has had it out for us since tha beginning. He tried tah have Kurt killed, he's tha one that suggested Mystique adopt me and train me tah be a part of his team… he put his own daughter in an asylum. Why should his son be any different from him? From what Ah know of him… he would be capable of all that and not have any remorse." She replied.

"But… maybe he could be different?" Mary asked hopefully.

"Ah doubt it." Rogue replied finally, her voice still cold. The two sat there in silence for a few moments, Mary contemplating what Rogue had told her, and Rogue hoping she had convinced her sister to stay away from the boy.

"Ok… I understand Rogue." Mary spoke up. "I don't believe he's as horrible as you say he could be, but I understand why you think so. But… that's not gonna stop me from being friends with him. He hasn't done anything to me… he at least deserves my friendship if he wants it." She explained.

Rogue sat there, speechless. Part of her didn't want to fight with her sister, and another part wanted to snatch her up and yell at her. Pietro was the enemy. He had proved himself evil a million times, and Mary wasn't going to listen to her? Why the hell not? She calmed her thoughts and composed a reply. "Ok Mary. Just promise me you'll be careful around him." She asked, her tone cool.

Mary smiled softly and nodded. She was about to speak up when Tabitha's voice rang out. "MARY! Let's GO!"

"I've gotta run… thanks Rogue." Mary thanked before turning and running out of the room.

Rogue stayed in the library for a while, seething. Mary should listen to her. Pietro couldn't be trusted, he had proven that. Questions plagued her mind. _"Why is she so set on trusting him? Why won't she listen tah reason? Ah've been here a lot longer than she has… Ah've been with tha Brotherhood. Ah know these things… why won't she listen?…Why tha hell is he being so friendly anyway?" _Her thoughts rushed by, she was beginning to upset her psyche's as well.

­_­- You know, you're sister is pretty hot; I can see why he's going for her. She'd make nice arm candy- _She recognized that psyche as Pietro, and scowled at being so foolish as to absorb him.

_Ew! Like that was so totally shallow you jerk! Mary has a heart ya know? You break it and we'll hurt you!- _Kitty's psyche defended. A small murmur of other psyches began to speak up, and Rogue struggled to take control. She mentally shoved them all back into their 'rooms' and locked the doors tight. She relished the quiet once again after the voices died away, and realized what Kitty's psyche had said.

_Mary has a heart… You break it and we'll hurt you!_ Rogue shook her head at the realization. Mary was developing a crush on Pietro. She didn't realize earlier, but now it was understood. She set on the couch and a strange feeling of foreboding swept over her. She didn't know what it was, but she felt no good would arise of this.

"What have you gotten yourself into, Mary?" She asked the darkness, half hoping it would give her an answer.


	16. Chapter 16

**So. I return. I have exams but I'm getting really sick of studying for them! If these chapters aren't up to par, please forgive me! And if you see something with the plot that concerns you… tell me! AHH! I was afraid I almost lost G a while ago lol. I'm gonna run though, I have a Latin and Hermeneutics exam tomorrow! Followed by History of Modernity and literature on Tuesday, Chemistry and Advanced Algebra 2 on Wednesday, and Logic on Thursday! THEM I'M DONE! WOOOO! I'll be a junior O.O Scary. It's been a great year with y'all! Thanks for being awesome readers!**

**Multifan**- You can see where me plot is going? Hmm . Shoosh XD. I chose Pietro for a number of logical reasons, as well as a good bit of illogical reasons as well. I'm cute like that . Dun worry though, it'll all work out. And yes… Kelly is a total jerk, although I do feel like I made him out worse than he can be… nah 8D.

Pietro does have more common sense than people give him I believe… it may be hidden under pride and maliciousness… but its there!

**Agent-G**- Sorry to scare you dude… but we cleared it all up in the emails. Like I said earlier, you can count on me. No Pietro/Mary. Bleeeeh.

**Howlerdrode**- Mary will always be in some sort of trouble with Tabitha after her lol. With Pietro after her too… gah… poor girl.

**Brandy Lebeau** – Yeah! I so posted a bunch of chapters lol. I can't keep my readers hanging anymore than I already do!

**Bubba Hyde**- Thanks for the compliments dude! I can't believe you read the original. Scary. I'm glad you like the fact that I added Tabby. I missed her when she went poof on Evo. Woo! Another Bama dude! ROLL TIDE!

**God Bless y'all! And on with the story!**

&&&&

Tabitha, Amara and Mary parked across the street from an enormous house and hopped out of the car. Mary stood in awe; the house resembled Xavier's mansion, but it was significantly smaller. The owners' had gone out of town for the weekend, and their sophomore son had decided to throw a party. Everyone in the grade was invited, even mutants, but it didn't seem that many people were here yet. The grand scale of the house and decorations made Mary forget that she didn't want to be here.

"…Whose house is this again?" Amara asked, her brown eyes shining in excitement.

"Travis'! He's an awesome guy. Even more so cause he's mutant friendly." Tabitha replied as she grabbed her friends' arms and dragged them across the street and into the house. They opened the door and were blasted by 'One Armed Scissor' from the speakers. Smiling, they made their way to the backyard.

"Travis!" Tabitha called over the music to a brunette chatting with another boy near the pool.

"Tabitha!" He greeted as he walked over and gave her a high five. "You made it! Sweet. I was hoping we'd have the blond bomb here tonight." He grinned before noticing Amara and Mary. "Hey Amara, glad you made it too." He waved before tilting his head at Mary. "Are you a sophomore? I thought you were a junior… your name's Rogue isn't it?" He inquired.

"Actually, Travis my boy, she's her sister." Tabitha corrected, swinging her arm around Mary, who instinctively flinched and threw the arm off. "She's pleasant." The blonde added.

"So I see." He laughed. "Well, I'm glad to have you here…" He paused seeing as he didn't know her name.

"Mary." The two-tone replied with a nervous smile.

"Mary." He finished. "Make yourself at home, and don't be afraid to get rowdy." He assured her as he nodded to all three of them and walked over to a group of boys.

"That's all I needed to hear!" Tabitha exclaimed as she grabbed her girls again and dashed onto the dance floor. It took Mary a moment, but the memories of dancing at parties with Amy flooded back to her and her body went on autopilot, performing moves she didn't know she knew.

"Where did a southerner learn those steps? I was led to believe that you all were sweet, innocent and stupid people." Amara stated matter-of-factly as she followed Mary's lead.

"Last generation maybe! You gotta remember that teenagers are teenagers wherever you go. We do keep up with the times down there." Mary laughed. After a moment, a large group of girls walked onto the dance floor, and joined in with the trio, not caring they were dancing with mutants. Mary's nerves began to disappear, and her mood was improving. She smiled as she realized the irony of it all: this was the best night she had experienced in a while, and she was surrounded by a lot of people in dangerous proximity.

Hours passed, and Mary found herself drawn away from the crowd to the balcony. From here, she could see all the happenings of the party, but not be so close to everyone that an accident might occur. She had decided to come up here for a few reasons, the main ones being that more and more people had arrived and crowded her, making her nervous. The second reason was that Tabitha was beginning to get a _little_ tipsy on the liquor from Travis' parents' wine collection. Mary didn't trust the girl that much sober, it was safe to say she wouldn't trust her at all intoxicated.

The two-tone stared up at the full moon and cherished the solitude for the moment. She was beginning to like Bayville. So there were the ever-present mutant protestors, but overall many people were tolerant and befriended them. It wasn't anything like home though. She sighed as she remembered Greenville. Everything was different down there. Strangers could strike up a conversation with one another on the street. People were a whole lot warmer down there, and didn't care if you were a mutant or not. Or at least most people were. But those who discriminated against mutants were often discriminated against as well because of it.

Mary's attention was drawn back to commotion at the party. She looked down and saw Tabitha pointing her finger at a group of girls that had been incredibly snobby to the trio upon arrival. She heard part of Tabitha's slurred accusation, and realized it was about mutant and normal people segregation. She saw Amara come up and whisper in the blonde's ear, no doubt trying to subdue her, but it was to no avail. Tabitha's temper had been aroused, and it wouldn't calm itself until Tabitha was appeased… and Mary guessed to appease her would take a bit of violence. She debated staying where she was as to not get drawn into the skiff, but decided she may as well join the fray. She knew Amara couldn't calm Tabitha on her own… but Mary wondered how much help she would supply. Sighing, she turned and headed down the stairs and to the pool deck.

&&&&

"Seriously, you guys need to get over yourself. Just because you can't make bombs or teleport or throw fire, you for some stupid think you're better than us. My God. You're insane. We're better than YOU." Tabitha slurred angrily as she jabbed a finger into another girl's face.

The brunette glared at her angrily. "That just the attitude all of you have! Just because you think you have special deformities, you have a God complex! You're not better than us, you're just defective." The girl sneered back; a murmur of agreement came from a few girls behind her.

"Defective?" Tabitha snorted, balling her hands by her sides. Mary shoved through the ring of people that were beginning to encircle them and looked to Amara who shrugged helplessly and looked around for anyway to calm the raging blonde.

"Tabitha." Mary whispered in her ear. "Do **not** blow these girls up." She ordered as she saw a glow coming from her closed fists. "I'm pretty sure Kelly would have a field day with that, as would the rest of the nation." She reminded.

"Who cares about Kelly?" She raged, causing Mary to jump back and look once again to Amara. "He deserves to be blown up more than you losers do! The insane codger doesn't realize that mutants are people too… he treats us like scum!" She yelled.

"He treats you how you deserved to be treated." The girl who fueled the outburst snickered.

Mary, Amara, Tabitha, and the one or two other mutants at the party all focused on that one girl, who stared back at them defiantly. Mary almost ripped off her gloves right there, and she saw that Amara's eyes were glowing yellow. They were all trying to restrain themselves from attacking her… everyone that is, but Tabitha. The blonde opened her fist and was about to hurl the bombs as hard as she could at the group of girls, but Mary reacted first.

She didn't know what to expect, it had been a long time since she had absorbed anyone. She wished she could have left it to Amara, to anyone else, but how could they have subdued her? Tabitha would have blown them up as well. Mary ripped off her arm sock and glove in one swoop and grabbed Tabitha's arched arm. They both screamed, Tabitha in pain and Mary in shock. After mere seconds, Tabitha slumped back and Amara caught her in her arms while giving Mary an incredulous look.

Mary didn't see it. Her eyes were closed and she was clutching her head while Tabitha's psyche ravaged her mind and excited Kurt and Tommy's psyches in her mind. They were all screaming at her, and she felt as if the sound would blow out her eardrums.

"_Shut up… just… SHUT UP!" _ She yelled at them all. They were shocked into silence, and Mary opened her eyes to find the party guests' attention on her. She felt a wave of rage wash over her, and realize it must have been Tabitha's psyche still at the surface of her mind.

"You're a mutant too? I just thought you lived with the freaks." The brunette said disgustedly.

"You shut up too… I can't blow up the voices in my head… but I can **definitely** blow up you if I want to." Mary threatened, opening her hand to reveal glowing explosives. The group of girls backed up a few feet, and a sadistic grin came to Mary's face as she advanced. Tabitha's psyche was quickly on her way to taking full control, and Mary didn't know if she could stop it.

"Mary." Amara's sharp voice snapped Mary out of it and allowed her to somewhat subdue the rage blinding her. The two-tone turned to see Amara still supporting an unconscious Tabitha in her arms. "Let it go. She's not worth it, and we need to get Tabitha home now." The Nova-Roma princess ordered using the same tone she used on the servants back home. Mary glared back to the girls who had started the commotion, and sighed as she put on her arm sock and glove. She walked back to Amara and helped support Tabitha's dead weight. They walked pass the girls without a word, and their looks were enough to silence them in case they decided to speak up.

They passed Travis on their way out, and he gave them a pitying look. "You know this is going to be what people talk about at school for a while." He pointed out.

"I know… but you know Tabitha, always willing to start something." Amara replied sadly.

"I actually heard it all… those girls did start it… and I'll make sure that's known at school on Monday." He corrected as he opened the door for them and followed them to the car. As he opened the door to the backseat he chuckled softly. "I told you guys to get rowdy, but I wasn't expecting this."

"None of us were." Mary replied with a cheerless smile as she snagged the keys out of Tabitha's pocket.

"Do you think you're safe to drive?" He asked hesitantly.

"I think I can suppress Tabitha's driving habits for a few minutes until we get back to the Institute, babe." Mary winked, pausing afterwards as she realized a bit of Tabitha's personality was coming out. "Yeah… we're gonna go now." She muttered as she hopped in the SUV and started the engine.

"Night you guys!" He called over the roar of the motor before turning and heading back to the house.

Mary paused before shifting into gear. "Well… tonight was interesting, wasn't it 'Mara?" She asked with a smile, trying to lighten the mood. Amara looked back to Tabitha, who was still conked out in back.

"I think she's going to kill you after she wakes up." The princess pointed out.

"It'll be too late then. Ororo and Logan are going to get to us first." Mary corrected as she shifted to drive and started back to the Institute.

&&&&

Logan knew the instant the intercom fuzzed to life that something was wrong. There was no need for it, the girls had made curfew, and from what he saw of the car from the cameras, there were no dinks in it. What then, could be the problem? "Whatcha need?" He asked gruffly.

"Umm… Mr. Logan. There was a bit of an accident at the party." Amara's voice responded hesitantly. Logan didn't wait for the rest of the explanation, but rushed to the garage to find an unconscious Tabitha in the back seat. He looked to the girls, and Mary raised her hand slightly.

"It… it was kinda my fault, Mr. Logan." Mary admitted, but Logan raised his hand.

"I don't need tah hear it here, kid. We'll talk in a few minutes, just head to Xavier's office." He responded as he opened the back door and picked up Tabitha. He was about to walk out through the door when Ororo appeared in it.

"Children, what happened?" She demanded after one look at Tabitha. Logan muttered something to her and she nodded. "Follow me." She said softly. Mary and Amara started after her, and when they caught up Ororo put an arm around Mary, who winced slightly and pulled away from it. She wasn't in any hurry to absorb anyone else anytime soon.

They entered the dark room and Ororo clicked on the lights. The two girls glanced at each other, and Mary knew that Amara played no part in this, and she shouldn't be accused of doing so. "Ms. Ororo, Amara had no part in this… she tried to dissuade me from doing what I did… but I felt there was no way around it." Mary explained quickly.

"That I believe, Mary." Xavier's voice said from behind them as he wheeled into the room. He looked as if he was just awoken from sleep, and Mary realized he must have been. It was nearly 11:30. So, she absorbed a teammate and woke the instructors… _"Oh great… I'm dead." _She thought nervously to herself as Xavier situated himself behind his desk. He was about to speak when Logan walked in as well.

"She's in the Med Bay… Hank said she would be fine and that he'd watch her for a while." He replied to Xavier's questioning stare. The older man smiled and returned his attention to the girls.

"So girls… why don't you tell me what exactly happened?" He asked. The two girls glanced at each other before starting into their story.

&&&&

By the time they finished, Mary was developing a headache. She surmised it was Tabitha's hangover forming in her head instead of the owner's. Xavier said a few things, but Mary wasn't listening; with her headache came the psyches again.

_-Dude! That was fucking awesome! She went down like that! Yah should do that more often, its great.­-_ Tommy's psyche cheered.

­_-You need to be careful swchester. You could have hurt Tabitha. You shouldn't have acted so irrationally.- _Kurt chastised her for revealing her mutantcy.

­_­-You're INSANE. You should have let me finish it! Now I'm in your head babe. I told you, I don't shutup. You shoulda listened to me! I can't believe you stopped me from taking down that bitch! She deserved it.- _Tabitha yelled louder than all of them.

_­- Tabitha, cool it. There shouldn't have been confrontation in the first place. If you hadn't gotten drunk...- _Kurt was interruped before he could go any further.

Mary popped her neck as Tommy jumped into the fray and the headache worsened. She had closed her eyes what seemed only like seconds ago, but when she opened them again Amara was gone, and the three instructors were staring at her with concern.

"Mary?" Ororo questioned as she sat down next to the tormented child.

"I'm fine… just a headache." Mary assured her. Ororo stared with concern for a moment before looking to Charles, who then nodded.

"**_Give me a few moments with her alone, please Ororo."_** He asked her telepathically. The African woman nodded in understanding and stood.

"I'll get you some water and Advil." She comforted as she walked towards the door, glancing at an oblivious Logan as she passed him. He made no move to leave, and Ororo elbowed him in the rubs.

"Oh… I'll go with ya." He grunted as he followed the woman out, leaving Xavier and Mary alone.

"Mary, I'm not going to chastise you for you doing what you think was best. You obviously saw no other way to subdue the situation, and took the proper actions. It's just a pity that Tabitha was harmed in the process… but I'm not blaming you for that. You had no other choice. From what I understand, she was prepared to use her powers on the other girls, and who knows what dilemma would be upon us then. I would like you to be honest with me with one thing though…" He trailed off and she nodded for him to continue."Amara mentioned that you had taken on many of Tabitha's mannerisms, she said you probably hadn't even noticed a few of them… like the one in which she plays with her hair." He stated as Mary twirled hers around her fingers. She quickly stopped and put her hands in her lap.

"Yes… well… I was concerned that perhaps the psyches might be overpowering you? Rogue had minor difficulty with them when they first entered her mind, and I assumed it would be the same with you but it seems your condition is worse. Please, be honest with me. Are the psyches troubling you?" He asked, his brown eyes boring holes into hers.

Mary's breath caught. What should she say? That the voices bothered her? That wasn't necessarily true… just when she was tired or she had absorbed someone new. But all the time? No. Besides, these were her powers… she was going to have to deal with them. They were with her forever. God wouldn't have given her something that would just begin to decay her body, right? She hoped so at least.

"No, Professor. I think tonight's strain is a bit too much. Tabitha's psyche is just a bit rowdy I guess… it's just giving me a headache." She assured him. He stared at her for a moment, searching her face for a lie. Finding none, his expression softened into care.

"I wouldn't imagine any less from Tabitha. You may go to bed, I'll stave Logan off from early morning training tomorrow so you might get some peace." He smiled as she stood and headed for the door. "Goodnight, Mary." He fare welled.

"Night, Professor" Mary replied, hoping she would feel better in the morning, and hopefully not have the full extent of Tabitha's hangover.


	17. Chapter 17

**Just for my sanity, I think I'm skipping ahead about… 5 days. Its now Wednesday. Enjoy lol. **

The weekend had passed without any further incident. Tabitha woke up early Saturday morning furious with Mary for stopping the fight. Mary responded back with a few bombs, still apparently angry with Tabitha for causing her hangover. The two were separated, and later Tabitha apologized and they were allowed to see each other without someone having to be there to break them up.

Rogue and the other inhabitants of the Institute had been worried about Mary after the absorption; the girl just seemed to hold Tabitha's personality longer than Rogue had. By Sunday, Xavier had called Rogue into his office to ask a favor of her…

Rogue spied her sister walking down the school hallway a bit after lunch. Xavier had asked her to observe her sister's behavior for a bit to make sure everything seemed Ok. He seemed to be worried about the psyches, but Rogue was sure that Mary could handle just the three that were in her mind. Rogue knew how the psyches worked; upon first being absorbed into the mind, they were loud and scared. The voices believed that they themselves were the person that was absorbed, and not residual parts of them. They would be scared, and once they realized they were trapped in someone's mind, they would become angry and search for a way out. Even though over time they realized they weren't actual people, they still fought for control of Rogue's body as compensation for being trapped.

They fought all the time. Fortunately though, over time they would weaken and barely become whispers in the back of her mind. They would lose their enthusiasm for the fight, and leave her alone. But… once someone new was absorbed, the process would begin again. Then, there were times when she was weak. That meant her walls would break down, and they would strive for control again. Every time she had successfully gained control over them, except for once… but that was when there were dozens of voices all acting as one. Right now, Mary only had three voices. She knew her sister could handle them, even if Tabitha was one of them.

No, she watched her sister for a different reason. Ever since last Friday night, when she realized her sister had a growing fondness for Pietro, she had been keeping an eye on her at school. She trusted her sister to watch herself around him, but she knew that Pietro might not. She wanted to catch that little weasel doing something wrong with her sister, and she would be on him in an instant to show Mary what he really was. She prayed he stumbled over this goody personality he had had for the past few weeks and his true mean spirited nature would shine through in full and Mary would see her mistake in liking a pompous, overblown, malicious self-centered prick.

So Rogue was a little vindictive, it was her little sister she was protecting.

She saw the younger girl stop at her locker and pack up for the next few classes, and saw in annoyance as Pietro sped up behind her and tapped her on the shoulder. She jumped and whirled around, terrified at the random contact. He apologized, and the two chatted for a moment. He patted Mary on the head playfully before speeding off down the hallway again. A growl actually emitted deep within Rogue's throat before she could stop herself.

"You know, that's kind of creepy." A voice called from behind her. Rogue need not turn to know who it was. Jean. Fortunately though, Rogue and Jean were somewhat fond of each other. Not too much, but well enough to keep Rogue from wanting to walk off without responding.

"Yeah… well it's mah sister… Pietro's flirting with mah little sister and Ah don't understand why." She sighed as she finally turned to face the redhead.

"Maybe he likes her?" Jean offered.

"You know as well as Ah do that that's not it." Rogue replied.

"Do you trust your sister, Rogue?" Jean asked after a moment. Rogue nodded. "Then she'll be fine. She can handle herself. She's your sister, and a heck of a lot like you… Pietro won't stand a chance if he tries to lay a hand on her." Jean assured.

Rogue stood there for a moment before she turned to watch her sister walk away. "Ah can't help it… she's mah first real family Ah've found. She's a part of me more than Kurt can be… she's blood. Ah just feel the need tah protect her." She tried to explain, but knowing that was only the surface of her emotions.

"That's why we call you the protective big sister." Jean laughed softly as she grabbed her books and prepared to walk away. "Just calm down a bit, Rogue… nothing dire will happen if you take your eyes off her." She assured as she headed for class. Rogue didn't respond, but narrowed her eyes as her sister walked out of sight. After a moment, she made her way to her locker to gather her books and head for 6th period.

&&&&

"So, Pietro, how's it feel to be restricted to just one girl?" Lance called from the tree he was propped up against. He felt like skipping 6th period, it just seemed pointless to him. He was never going to use History anyway, so it really didn't matter.

Pietro kicked a rock down the street and turned to Lance. "You know what, I hated it in the beginning… and if I think about it now, I still hate it." He informed as he crossed his arms. "But I started thinking, this could be extremely beneficial to all of us if the mission succeeds." He began, knowing he would catch his roommate's attention.

"Really? How?" The shaggy brunette inquired.

"Have you seen the looks the X-Men have been giving me lately? It's like their watching my every move! I know you and Kitty are still off and on for some stupid reason, and hopefully you'll play along with Magneto's outrageous plan and try and convince her that I've actually got… interest… in Mary." He said disgustedly.

"And why would I do that?" Lance snorted, uncrossing his arms and walking out into the sunlight.

"Because, Lance, if the X-Men get off my back, my job of luring her away gets easier. The easier it is, the faster the plan goes. The faster the plan goes, the happier Magneto is." Pietro explained simply.

"And the happier Magneto is, the better reward we all get." Lance finished for him.

"Exactly." Pietro nodded firmly. There was a bit of quiet in which the two boys just sat and basked in the sunlight, pitying the fools trapped in class.

"So how is the plan going so far?" Lance asked after a moment.

"She's falling for me fast, not that I blame her." Pietro laughed and received an eye-roll from Lance. "If I could just get her away from her over-protective sister…" He didn't finish, but instead waved his hand in frustration.

"Dude, I know. I made the mistake of almost crushing Mary a while ago. Rogue laid me out flat." The brunette nodded in understanding. "I'll try and convince Kitty that you've seen the error of your ways and are now trying to reconcile with your past." Lance roared with laughter, receiving a glare from the silver-headed boy.

"Just don't overdo it. I don't need anymore suspicion on my part." Pietro ordered as he stood up and walked away.

Lance lay back in the grass, propped up on his elbows. If anyone were going to get the X-Men suspicious, it would be Pietro himself. The speed-demon was attracting major attention from the wrong people; even Kitty had mentioned his apparent fondness of the younger girl to Lance. If the boy wasn't careful, they would catch on… and while that would be hilarious, he knew it wouldn't be long before the X-Men ended up on the Brotherhood's doorstep looking for retribution.

He shook the unsettling thoughts out of his head and stood up and brushed the grass off his clothes. He heard the bell rang and knew that he better get to last period; he shared that class with Kitty.

&&&&

"Hey Kitty." Lance waved as he took his seat next to the perky girl.

"Hi Lance!" Kitty replied warmly as she pulled her book out. She looked up to the teacher and realized that today was going to be another study hall, for he hadn't moved from his chair since they all arrived. This meant chaos in room 204. She sighed and put her book away before turning to Lance.

"So, how's your day been, Pretty Kitty?" He smiled as she blushed at her nickname. She was gorgeous.

"Pretty well, I passed my trig test I thought I had bombed." She smiled. "Oh, and Scott and I had to nearly, like, hold Rogue back because we thought she was about to go on a rampage." She rolled her eyes at her roommate's attitude.

Lance gave a questioning glance and Kitty expounded. "Like, a few days ago there was sophomore party. You heard about what happened right?" She asked. He shook his head no and she wondered how he could miss out on the biggest thing to be talked about at school for a while. "Mary used her powers on Tabitha." She whispered below the roar of the class.

"She what?" Lance exclaimed, wondering himself how he missed this news.

"Yeah… Tabitha was, like, about to go homicidal and that's the only way Mary knew to stop it. But… anyways," Kitty skipped ahead to today's happenings. "That showed Mary as a mutant and she's been getting picked on all this week. Some idiot senior elbowed all the books out of her arms and Rogue happened to see it. She was about to attack, I swear. It was lucky I was walking her to class and Scott was nearby." She informed him with a nod of her head.

Lance was relieved to hear it wasn't Pietro that had almost been attacked, but his curiosity drove him to ask more questions. "Why's Rogue been so pissy lately?" He asked blatantly, not hiding his annoyance with the new personality.

"New family. She's being a big sister now. And, like, Pietro flirting with Mary left and right isn't helping her stress any." Kitty snapped back, defending her best friend. "What's up with him anyway? Mary's pretty much a carbon copy of Rogue… why not go for the older version?" Kitty scowled in disgust.

Lance was about to reply when he noticed the stares they were catching with their tiff. "Look… we'll talk about this later… I promise." He assured her, effectively causing the other classmates to stop snooping on their affairs.

&&&&

Kitty shivered in the cooling night air as she walked to the coffee shop to meet Lance. She wasn't sure of their relationship anymore. One moment they were cuddling and happy, the next they were screaming and yelling at each other. Right now, she thought they were more on a friendly level than dating. She was fine with that too. As soon as Lance decided to mature and commit himself to the relationship, she would be waiting for him.

He stood as she neared the table and planted a friendly kiss on her cheek. Her eyes shone and she returned the kiss once he pulled away. The two set down and waited for the server.

"Look Kitty, I'm sorry for snapping at Rogue earlier… I'm just defending a friend, ya know?" Lance apologized quickly.

"I understand Lance." She assured him as she took off her coat. "But you're right, Rogue is acting differently… and Pietro is aggravating her. You told me earlier we would talk… and we're here… can't you like, give me some insight?" She said, cutting quickly to the point for her sake. It was hard rooming with Rogue lately; ever since Pietro had turned his attention on Mary it had been a rant every night about it.

Lance was surprised by her blatant approach, but shrugged it off. "Pie's acting different lately. He had an argument with Magneto a few days ago, ever since then he's been acting weird. Kinda… outta it." Lance lied, feeling a small pang of guilt for doing so.

"Magento?" Kitty's tone changed from intrigue to suspicion.

"Well… the guy is his father. They do speak." Lance explained quickly. "I don't know what they were talking about… but whatever it was affected him so much that he threw his cell phone that Mags calls him on out." The brunette informed her, not necessarily lying. Pietro had hurled his cell across the living room last night, and he was sure it was under the couch hidden deep under old pizza boxes.

"Whoa… I wonder what's going on…" Kitty muttered.

"I dunno… but he's seemed happier actually once he did that." Lance shrugged.

There was a small break in conversation when the waiter came and took their orders. Afterwards, Kitty looked deep in thought for a few moments. "…What if he's cut ties with Magneto?" She guessed.

"I don't know Kit… but it could be a possibility." He lied again, now wanting Pietro's blood for asking him to lie to Kitty. She was the only girl who didn't see surface things, she really saw into him. And he was lying to her. He prayed his actions wouldn't come back and bite him in the ass.

The conversation shifted from there, and he was glad. He shoved the earlier part of the conversation out of his mind and concentrated on the subject at hand. It wasn't his problem now; he had done his part. Pietro had to get the girl, and wouldn't be receiving anymore of his help.

&&&&

Lance arrived home late that night, but Pietro was still up clicking through channels on the TV. He perked up as the brunette walked through the door and stared at him as he walked into the living room. "Well? How'd the date go?" He asked, feigning interest. He just wanted to know if Lance talked to Kitty at all about him.

"I did it. I was 'convincing' too," He said, using finger quotes. "So don't get your panties in a bunch about it. I'm sure Kitty will go back and try and convince Rogue to lay off. But that's it… I'm not helping you anymore. You can get yourself killed, but you're not taking me with you." Lance replied firmly as he spun around and headed up the stairs.

Pietro perked a brow. "What the hell is wrong with him?" He muttered to himself. At least that part of the plan was done. Hopefully, Rogue wouldn't become even more suspicious and become a greater thorn in his side. Hopefully, he would be able to get the girl soon without alerting the X-Men… hopefully he would retain his sanity until then. It was hard for him to be pleasant all the time to someone he didn't personally like.

"God, she's a sophomore too. How low will I go to get this damn mission done?" He scowled as he put his head in his hands. "I've got to get this done… soon." He sighed as he turned off the TV and headed out. He didn't know where, he just had to run to relieve stress.

&&&&

"Kitty, **what?**" Rogue asked harshly as she was awoken by her roommate. "Couldn't it wait until morning? Cripes." She muttered as she rolled over and put her pillow over her head.

Kitty crossed her arms and frowned. "Fine then. I was just gonna tell you what I heard about Pietro tonight. If you think it can wait until morning, then like, go ahead… stay in bed." She said snappily, knowing full well she would get the two-tone's attention.

Kitty was right; Rogue sat up and looked at Kitty quizzically. Her hair was sticking up at odd angles due to wallowing in the bed, and she was without make-up. She looked… sweet. The brunette personally wished the Goth would stop wearing so much dark make-up; it masked her natural beauty. "Wha?" She asked.

"Like, yeah. Lance and I were having dinner and he mentioned that Pietro had a huge fight with Magneto. He threw away the cell Magneto calls him on, and since then Lance tells me that like, he's been a whole lot happier." Kitty summarized.

Rogue thought for a moment; it was difficult because she had just woken up, but she thought nonetheless. "What would cause a rip with Mags?" She asked, stifling a yawn.

"I dunno… I thought you might have an idea."

"Yeah… cause yah know… Ah would an' all." Rogue replied sarcastically.

"Oh, shutup. I could have not even told you tonight. I thought you might be happy to hear this." Kitty replied, annoyed.

"Ah'm sorry Kit… Ah do appreciate it. Ah'm just wonderin' if Ah should trust Pietro anyway. He just doesn't strike me as tha type tah be interested in Mary, yah know?" Rogue explained; her frustrations finally out in the open with her best friend.

Kitty shrugged. "People change Rogue… who knows?" She offered.

"Yeah, but tha Brotherhood?" Rogue pointed out.

"I totally get that Rogue… but you and Tabitha were Brotherhood at one point." Kitty countered as she made her way to her closet to change for bed. Rogue let those words sink in as she fell back into her pillows. It was true, both her and the bodacious blonde were on the opposing side once upon a time. Something had changed within them; the light had been clicked on and they realized where they truly belonged. Maybe Pietro could change?

…But then again… like father like son. She had always seen Pietro as malicious, proud and vindictive. What would make him want to change so suddenly? Would it even be possibly for him to change? The thoughts were both unsettling and comforting to Rogue as she lay there in bed. Maybe she would begin to lighten up on Pietro now; it would lessen her and Mary's stress… Pietro's as well no doubt.

She supposed she should be happy about the rift apparently growing between Magneto and Pietro, but something just didn't seem right in the back of her mind. Her thoughts were a contradicting mess until sleep slowly reclaimed her, but even then, the dreadful feeling didn't fade.


	18. Chapter 18

**(Sweatdrop) Hehehe… I hate my computer . It has a virus on it that's trying to kill me. KILL ME I SAY (twitch). So yeah, I'm uploading these two chapters, but it might be a while until more are posted because I can't risk saving any more files onto my hard drive. Curse you aquasc- VIRUSES! On a side note… some of my reviewers went poof on me (tear). Where did y'all get? Or maybe it's me and I'm just imagining it XD. Oh well. Hey! G! I'm so halfway through 'Enter Mayhem' and I'm LOVING IT! I told you once summer hit I'd be on your stories! I was planning on giving you a full review once I finished it! Ok, I'm gonna go now! My computer is… growling… (glares).**

**Multifan**- Wee yes Travis is an OC. I wish I could have picked out an actual Evo character, but I haven't seen the show in years do to its cancellation…and I seriously have the memory of a goldfish when it comes to names. So… OC! Hehe. Yeah, Rogue does somewhat understand what the two think, but she has absorbed a lot of people… she could at one point get all the people confused. That's what I was trying to write: Rogue wants to trust Pietro for Mary's sake, but she knows he's evil. She sees how he's been acting, but she doesn't know why. It's all totally off for her and she doesn't know how to handle it… And yeah! Lance can be a bit smarter than Pietro at times cause he doesn't let his pride get in the way, doesn't mean he's any less evil though!

**Fireinu**- dun worry! Rogue'll definitely watch out for the speed demon.

**Agent-G**- I kinda have qualms about Kitty and Lance myself, and I showed a bit that Kitty did too. I didn't write that their relation ship was perfect, nor did I write that he was abusive and mean. I just wrote that it was… hectic. The two dated off and on throughout Evo, and there was no doubt that while the two liked each other, there was definitely some issues in the relationship. All I did here was transpose it to writing. Oh, and I plan later on elaborating their powers further!

**Brandy Lebeau**: I'm kinda iffy with Pietro! Sometimes he can seem OK, and others I want to strangle him. I'm trying to figure out how to straddle the line in this story.

**Howlerdrode**- Of course she'd absorb Tabitha! The one person she doesn't need in her head is the one she's gonna get lol. It's Murphy's Law.

**I ADORE Y'ALL! Don't ever stop being awesome reviewers **

Rogue awoke the next morning and immediately was overwhelmed by the same feeling of dread she felt upon drifting off to sleep last night. She sat up in bed and glanced around the room, looking for any sign of trouble. There was nothing there. Through the dim morning light she saw Kitty curled up on her side asleep, clutching her stuffed dragon.

Shrugging off the feeling, she threw her covers off softly and glanced at the clock, 5:30. She knew she wouldn't be able to get back to bed, so she decided to go ahead and get a shower to beat the morning rush. She grabbed her clothes and makeup and made a beeline to the bathroom, and then to the kitchen to enjoy the quiet.

She arrived downstairs, fully dressed, to see her sister half asleep on the table while reading the morning paper. Rogue paused before entering the kitchen, not wanting to interrupt her peace, but she went in anyway after a moment.

"Can't sleep?" She asked as she went to the fridge. Mary jumped, and nearly fell out of her seat.

"Huh? Oh… I'm used to getting up this early on weekdays… it's a habit I guess." Mary explained as she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and turned the page. Rogue glanced at her and saw she was exhausted, and questions arose.

"Yah sure? Yah look exhausted… Yah could get tah bed and sleep another hour." The older girl offered.

"_And have Tabitha's nightmares? I don't think so."_ Mary shrugged it off and shook her head. She was still relieving some of Tabitha's memories in her sleep, most of them unhappy ones with her father. The conversation died for a few moments before Rogue noticed Mary beginning to nod off again.

"Hey." Rogue snapped her fingers under Mary's nose, causing her to yelp.

"What was that for?" Mary snapped, scooting her chair back.

"Yah're about tah drool on tha Sports section! What's up with yah? Yah've seemed weird tha past few days!" Rogue came back just as fierce.

"Its just school! I didn't realize how much people tormented mutants there! Especially new mutants! I'm still getting used to my powers, and Tabitha's personality is heckling me!" _"I'm trying to respect you by avoiding Pietro, and ignore my feelings for him…"_ She thought to herself, not daring to speak it aloud.

"Who's bothering you?" Rogue asked, her voice steely.

"Just… I don't know their names… juniors and seniors I think." Mary guessed, not wanting to unleash her sister's fury onto the deserving teenagers.

"Yah should tell someone if they're picking on yah." Rogue told her, sipping on a glass of milk.

"I've handled bullies before… it's no big deal." Mary replied curtly, beginning to feel tired of the little sister role. Rogue heard the ice in her voice and decided to change the subject.

"Yah said your powers are acting up?" Rogue asked. Ok, she changed the subject; she didn't intend it to be a more pleasant one.

Mary knew this is whom she needed to talk to about her powers. Rogue understood them, and she had been in Mary's position before most likely. The truth was, she still had residual effects from absorbing Tabitha. She had heard of Rogue's breakdown with her own powers, and she was afraid of that happening. "I… its just… do you ever have some people linger longer on the surface of your mind more than others?" She asked.

Rogue snorted. "Yah mean Tabitha? Yeah… she's got a pretty strong psyche. Don't worry if you're still feeling her; it took me a week to push her away. She tires yah out with all her yammering doesn't she?" She assured, reaching across the table and tucking Mary's hair behind her ear with her gloveless hand.

Mary breathed a mental sigh of relief; so she wasn't having a breakdown yet. Tabitha was just stubborn. When Rogue touched her, her skin tingled. It wasn't often that she felt someone else's skin. Of course Rogue made a habit of holding her hand every so often; Mary cherished the feeling of someone else's flesh on her skin. Her sister had told her the lack of skin contact over the years had nearly driven her insane, and Mary could see why. She was just thankful Rogue didn't want her little sister to experience the same feeling.

Rogue saw the wave of relief wash over the younger girl, and a swelling of happiness built within her. She really felt like a sister at times like these, and not just another housemate. She had built a relationship with her long lost sibling surprisingly quickly, and that had shocked her as well as the rest of the Institute. She felt a connection with her sister that she didn't feel with anyone else, and she relished it. "So… did Ah help?" She chuckled.

"A lot, actually… thanks." Mary smiled, clutching her sister's hand for a moment before releasing it and putting her own hand in her lap. The two shared a comfortable silence with each other until the other teammates came down and began the rowdy ritual of breakfast. Mary was seriously debating going back to her room for a few extra minutes of sleep, but before she realized, it was time to leave for school.

&&&&

Pietro sped into the school parking lot, his bag slung carelessly over his shoulder. Moments later Lance, Toad and Blob pulled up into the parking space next to him. "You losers left me at the house and I still beat this hunk of junk." The speed-demon snorted, kicking the tire of Lance's Jeep.

"Hey, we woulda got here sooner if Toad hadn't flagged us down in the middle of the street cause he missed the ride." Lance retorted, glancing at Todd.

"Shut-up! I get one shower a month and the one morning I get it, you leave me!" He snapped, shooting his tongue in Lance's direction. The brunette ducked, and the boy's green tongue instead landed on something near the garbage can. "EW!" He screeched as the paper came back and smacked him in the face. He ripped it off his appendage and stared at the flyer. "Yo, listen to this: Film Festival at the park. Fun for the family… No cost necessary but a good time." He cracked up. "Man, who goes to those lame things?" He asked rhetorically.

"The X-Men." Pietro's eyes narrowed, focused on something behind Toad.

"Seriously? I know they're lame, yo… but still? You think they'd be caught there?" Toad asked, not noticing that the attention was off him. Pietro walked past him and snatched the flyer out of his hands. "Yo! Where's the respect?" He demanded as the paper was ripped from him.

Pietro abandoned his housemates as he saw the X-Men break up and head for their separate lockers. He located Mary and sped up to her. "Hey!" He greeted cheerfully, happy that he had finally developed a plan to end his mission.

Mary's eyes lit up when she saw him. "Hey, Pietro." She replied. Her voice was airy, and he knew he must have seriously charmed her already. Who couldn't help but fall for the sexy mutant? He smiled to himself; despite the fact that this mutant was seriously damaging his social stature, it was quite amusing to see her respond to him.

"Look at what I found." He continued on, holding the flyer in front of her. "I know it sounds kinda cheesy," _"Kinda cheesy? God… I sound like a 1950's sitcom. Golly Mary, will you go to make-out peak with me?"_ He simultaneously thought, but continued on before the pause caused suspicion. "But it should be pretty cool. I think some of the students have entered. I was wondering if you wanted to go with me? I can't do anything like this with the other Brotherhood… they think it's lame." He explained, putting a hopeful look in his cold blue eyes.

Honestly, Mary thought it might be lame as well, but maybe they could go get coffee or something afterwards. Hell, it was time with Pietro, how could she refuse? She was about to reply with a resounding yes, when her mind flashed to her sister. Rogue would definitely refuse to her going off by herself with Pietro Maximoff. _"But… it's not like he would do anything to me! He can't rape me… I would kill him easily. I'll take my cell phone too in case something does happen, which it won't because Pietro is such a sweet guy. I don't see how she could see him as evil…" _She thought to herself. She could sneak away this one time; nothing would happen. She would just tell Rogue that Amanda Sefton had asked her over to get to know her better. It was true, ever since Amanda had found out that Kurt had a 'little sister' she had been begging for Mary to come over. Mary had refused politely the first few tries because she was nervous, but was seriously beginning to accept the offer. Amanda was sweet, and Mary thought she might like her.

So, she decided, tonight she would just tell Rogue that Amanda had invited her over. Mary would instead go with Pietro, and she would get home without anyone getting any wiser to where she actually was.

Pietro scanned her eyes. Mary had been silent for a few moments, and she seemed in a daze. He hoped he hadn't just messed up the reputation he had built with her and would have to start from scratch again. If that happened, he would scoop her up right here and speed her to Magneto. "Mary?" He waved his hand in front of her eyes.

Mary blinked and flinched away from his hand, not liking the surprising closeness. "Oh… sorry. Sure! I'd love to come. Could you meet me here at…" She paused and grabbed the flyer. "Six?" She read.

"Here?" Pietro repeated.

"Yeah." Mary nodded. "I don't think some people would appreciate you up at the mansion," She grimaced at her bluntness. "And… I don't have any idea where the Brotherhood house is. Here's common ground for both of us, and pretty easy for us both to get here." She explained.

"Sure… makes sense." _"Why the hell she would want to really meet here on Friday night is beyond me." _He thought. "So… front doors at six. I'll see you then." He smiled warmly and winked. "We need to get to class before we're both late though." He gestured to the clock and patted her on the head before speeding down the hall, invisible to the students and leaving only a breeze in his wake.

"_A DATE! …Sorta. This is AWESOME!" _The two-tone mentally cheered before hurrying to her locker for books. There was a spring in her step that wasn't previously there, and her brown eyes were glowing with excitement.


	19. Chapter 19

Mary slipped her head out the door to check if the coast was clear. Pleased to see all was quiet in the hallway, she stepped out of her room and started down the hall. She had planned on telling another student that she was leaving for 'Amanda's', just not her sister. She walked past a mirror in the hallway and paused to smooth out her clothing. She was wearing a black camisole underneath a sheer camouflage top, with her dark blue jeans with rips in the knees, and her favorite converses. She had her army jacket in her arms, knowing full well that autumn weather was turning nippier day by day. She figured tonight it would be pretty cold in the park that her long sleeves wouldn't keep her warm.

Mary made her way down the stairs and passed the recroom, where Bobby and Ray were playing a game of pool. She leaned against the doorframe and shouted to them above the music and clacking of balls. "Hey, Bobby? I'm going out with a friend tonight, can you pass along the message if anyone asks?" She asked of him.

"Sure thing!" He agreed happily as Ray scratched due to the sudden interruption.

"DUDE!" He yelled angrily as the balls positioned themselves to give Bobby a clear shot. "Thanks, Mary." He sighed as Bobby took his pool stick and aimed.

"Yeah, thanks Mary!" Bobby repeated cheerfully as he sunk the shot. Mary gave Ray an apologetic glance and made her way quickly out the door.

She stepped out the door and shivered in the twilight breeze that was flowing softly through Bayville. Slipping on her jacket, she made her way for Bayville High to meet Pietro. Mary felt a pang of remorse along the way. She had never been a fan of lying to her friends… but she knew it was the only way she'd be able to go out with him alone. Until she was able to convince them all that Pietro was sweeter than they thought, this would be the only way to meet him.

She walked up to the front doors of Bayville High and looked around. Pietro wasn't here yet, and she was starting to get cold. Shivering, she sat down underneath a tree to wait. Mary didn't have to wait long; seconds later, a jeep was heard peeling through the parking lot and skidded to a stop in front of her. The passenger window rolled down and Pietro stuck his head out. "Lance lent me his jeep so we wouldn't have to walk in the cold." He explained as Mary neared the vehicle cautiously. "And I found the roof cover for it in the closet, so yeah… it's pretty warm in here. You look like you're freezing! Come on, get in." He offered as he reached over and opened the door for her. Smiling, she accepted the offer and hopped in the toasty car.

"My Gawd, it's cold." She said, her teeth clattering together.

"How long were you waiting?" He asked, trying to sound sympathetic.

"Not too long… but I walked remember?" She pointed out, rubbing her hands together. Pietro made a bold move and grabbed her covered hands in his.

"You're freezing." He said obviously, her hands like ice in his. He squeezed them tightly and moved them over the vent that was blowing out warm air. Pietro felt her tense up upon contact, but she soon relaxed and seemed content in his grasp. He smiled to himself and released them, returning his hands to the wheel and putting the car in gear. "You might wanna hold on… I like to go fast." He warned her as he gunned it, the engine roared and soon they sped out of the parking lot and down the street.

&&&&

Pietro and Mary lay on blankets provided by the park as they watched the movies in the film festival. Pietro found it quite boring, but forced his expressions to feign interest. Mary, on the other hand, had gotten quite drawn into all the symbolism in a few of the films. "Enjoying yourself?" He chuckled to her. She nodded, and blushed a bit from her eagerness. "Good." He smiled, scooting closer to her so their legs were barely touching.

The sudden contact startled Mary, and she looked at their proximity. A part of her wanted to yelp and scoot away, but the other part of her wanted to move closer. She missed contact like this; sure her sister would hold her hand or touch her face every so often, but this kind of touching was different. It was… It gave her a warm and pleasant feeling, while the other touch from her sister just seemed to keep her content. She shoved away the feeling that told her that she was putting him in danger; they were both covered well… nothing would happen.

Before long, Pietro had gotten even closer, and Mary didn't seem to mind. After about an hour, she even put up enough courage to lay her head on his shoulder. It wasn't an attempt to make herself seem too infatuated, she was just tired… Exhausted pretty much. He smiled to himself as Mary began to nod off on his shoulder. If tonight worked out properly, he would have her in Magneto's hands before morning. He could easily subdue her in this state, either by taking her off guard with an attack, or slipping something in her drink. He mulled over the best way to restrain her for a few moments, but was jerked out of his thoughts by a cell phone. His hand automatically went to his pocket, thinking that it was Magneto. He had been surprised to see that his phone had still worked even though he had hurled it at the wall a few days ago.

Mary was startled by the noise as well, and realized it was her cell ringing. She checked the caller ID and saw it was Tabitha. "Tabitha? What?" She asked upon answering. There was a muffled reply, and though Pietro couldn't hear it totally, it sounded urgent.

"You're two freaking hours late for curfew." Tabitha chastised on the line.

"I'm WHAT?" Mary demanded.

"Check the clock, everyone's still up to, so there's gonna be a good chance that they realize you're gone." The blonde explained. Mary put her head down and scowled.

"Is everything Ok?" Pietro asked, trying to listen in as indiscreetly as possible.

There was a pause on the phone, and Mary didn't know if she had lost her signal of if Tabitha had hung up. She was about to shut her phone when the blonde spoke up again. "Mary, who's that?" She asked suspiciously.

"Umm," Mary couldn't lie. Tabitha probably already assumed it was Pietro anyway, and if she lied that would open up another big can of worms she didn't have time to deal with at the moment. "Its… Pietro." She mumbled.

"Shame on you. SHAME." Tabitha giggled. "Look, we'll talk about it when you get home, Ok? Just get your ass back here pronto." She demanded. Mary hung up the phone and looked to Pietro.

"I… gotta go. I'm over curfew and if I'm found out it's not gonna be pretty." She explained, rising.

"What do they do to you if you break curfew? Flog you?" Pietro snickered, standing as well and dusting off his pants.

"No… not normally," Mary grinned. "But… but they don't know I went out with you. If they find out that I broke curfew with a Brotherhood boy, Logan would kill me." She explained. Pietro perked a brow.

"_So… maybe there's a better way to get the runt to father." _ He plotted quickly. He didn't have time to work out the details just yet; he needed to get her home. "Well… we don't want that. Ok, come on I'll take you home." He offered as they started for the car. Once they were a few miles down the road, the car had warmed considerably, and Mary had taken off her jacket. She tossed it in the back to get it out of her way, and Pietro smiled. _"That's all I needed." _He smirked to himself.

He let her out at the front gates, and she opened the car door. "Can you get in or do you need me to rush you in?" He asked as he hopped out as well. Mary stopped short of punching in the code to get in.

"If people are still up, someone will notice the gates opening on security…" She said to herself. "I don't have any idea how I'm going to get in… Tabitha never explained that part of sneaking in." She explained dejectedly as she looked at the mansion.

"I can get you in." Pietro offered proudly. Mary perked her brow, and Pietro held out his hand. "Come on… you've ridden with me before." He reminded.

"Yeah, and it scared the hell outta me." She pointed out.

"This is a much shorter trip though." He defended. She sighed, and hesitantly took his hand in hers. He gathered her up into his arms and charged the fence line. Mary was sure impact was imminent, and she yelped. She was shocked to find though, that they were running up the wall. "Shh… you don't want to alert anything." He ordered her as they sped through the backyard. He was about to ask which window was hers, for he didn't want to arouse suspicion in the younger girl, when he saw Tabitha standing out on the balcony staring towards the road for signs of Mary no doubt.

Picking up more speed, he dashed towards the wall and sped up it as well. He finally stopped once they had reached the balcony, and set Mary down. The two-tone nearly collapsed from the sudden stop, but Tabitha had caught her.

"Whoa babe!" She exclaimed as Mary fell into her. "Where'd you come-" She didn't finish the sentence as she noticed Pietro. "Pietro… didn't know you delivered." She laughed.

"Yeah…well… she needed a way in. You may want to explain how to sneak in next time." He laughed painfully, wanting to die of embarrassment of doing something nice in front of Tabitha Smith.

"Will do, but you may want to leave before you're caught." She warned.

The teen nodded, and he took Mary's gloved and hand squeezed it. "Night, Mary. I'll see you later." He winked as he kissed the black leather and sped away. _"Bleh… tastes like X-Men. I need mouthwash."_ He thought to himself as he hopped into Lance's jeep and sped back home.

"Ooh lala." Tabitha snickered, as Mary stood there shell-shocked. After a moment, Tabitha jerked her inside. "Ok, so… you're home. Good thing Rogue or Logan didn't find out you were missing." She thanked God for that one. "Now, I'm supposed to be a good role model and tell you what you did was wrong. I'm supposed to tell you that lying is bad, and so is sneaking out with your archenemy. I'm supposed to tell Logan I knew where you were…" She began, and Mary's eyes grew wide with fear. "But, since I don't really care about what I'm supposed to do, I'm not gonna do any of that." She finished.

"But seriously, babe." She added, her tone stern. "You can't lie to your sister. You need to talk to her about Pietro… if you wanna keep seeing him. Don't sneak around the problem, face it head-on and get something accomplished." She told Mary as she pointed a finger in your face. "Cause… one day you're gonna get caught. We all are at one point in time." She wasn't going to elaborate on the consequences. She knew that Mary knew they weren't going to be pretty. Mary nodded in understanding and made her way to her closet to change.

"Good girl… now, I'm gonna go down and watch a movie in the recroom with whoever's down there. You wanna come?" Tabitha invited.

"Nah… I think I'll get to bed…" Mary replied from inside her closet. Tabitha shrugged and headed out the door, leaving Mary alone. She flopped down in the bed and stared at the ceiling. She was contemplating Tabitha's words. She knew she should talk to Rogue, but she was afraid of what she would say. Mary was afraid of a rift forming between them, and she didn't know what she would do if that happened. She resolved that she would talk to her sister later when she had a better understanding of her dislike of him. Maybe by then, Mary would know more about Pietro and be able to defend him against her sister.

She smiled though, as her thoughts had drifted to Pietro. She had a wonderful time tonight, and was thankful he had asked her to go. He was a real gentleman, and Mary felt comfortable with him. She didn't know of his past, but she figured that if he was trying to put that behind him and start anew that she wouldn't remind him of it with her questions. Slowly, she nodded off to sleep, fully content with her life at the moment.


	20. Chapter 20

**Woo! Chapter 20. Exciting! Yeah, while FFdotNET decided to be stupid and not let me upload for like, 3 days, I wrote another chapter. The plot is thickening... sorta? I dunno lol. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 20 **

Magneto was getting impatient. He knew he had ordered Pietro to take his time, but it had been about two weeks now. He glanced at his door, expecting it at any moment to be thrown open and Pietro rush in with the girl in his arms. Sighing, he sat down at his desk and watched his clock tick. He supposed he should take the spare time to tell Mastermind what he wanted done to the child, but right now he just wanted peace from the Acolytes.

He turned his attention from the clock to the wall and began to work out the minute details of his plan. Once Pietro… **if** Pietro ever got the girl to him, he would send her to Mastermind. He wanted Mary's memory of the X-Men to be altered, much like he altered Wanda's memories. He wanted her to believe the X-Men had lied to her, and had later betrayed her. He wanted her to believe Magneto had rescued her and nursed her back to health. He wanted her to believe she was his dedicated warrior, and would do anything he commanded. More importantly, he wanted her to forget entirely about her sister.

Once that was finally accomplished, they would begin her training. He wanted her to be able to recall her powers on impulse, and he believed a severe need of such advancement of her powers would cause it to come about. He would work her for all she was worth. For hours at a time, he would pit her against his Acolytes, who would show her little to no pity whatsoever. Her brain's natural urge for survival would develop her powers further, and she would be able to recall absorbed powers on command. She would be his most powerful fighter; possibly a strong enough addition to his team to take down Xavier's X-Men and get them out of his way forever.

That is, of course, if Pietro would actually deliver the girl to him. "Patience is a virtue." He muttered to himself as he stood suddenly, determined to take his mind off his troubles. He headed in search of Mastermind to inform him of what he was supposed to do when the time came.

&&&&

"Get up!" Jean urged Mary, who still lay in bed. It was somewhat surprising for Jean to walk into the kitchen early that morning and not find Mary sitting peacefully at the table. Figuring the girl was just taking her time, Jean set to work cooking breakfast. Before long, all the students were down… except for Mary.

The redhead had asked Tabitha where the girl was, and Tabitha informed her that Mary was still piled up in bed. Jean glanced at the clock; they all still had an hour before they had to leave. Mary needed to get up and get ready. Jean had finished her breakfast quickly and returned upstairs to check on the two-toned girl. She pushed open the door to see Mary buried under blankets and pillows.

"Mary!" She hissed as she nudged Mary.

"Go away." Mary snapped back from under the pillows.

"You need to get ready for school! Are you feeling ill?" Jean inquired.

"No. Tired. Go 'way." Mary ordered, rolling over to ignore the older girl. Jean frowned and prodded Mary once again. The two-tone's bare hand shot out in an effort to scare the girl away, but it only succeeded in make Jean retreat a few inches. She soon realized that Mary was sleeping in shorts and a t-shirt. Any other effort to jar her from her sleep could prove disastrous.

"I tried the easy way." Jean smirked as she raised Mary with her telekinesis. The younger girl didn't notice the smooth movement, and remained in her position. "Wake up!" Jean demanded louder as she dropped Mary on the floor.

"OW!" Mary yelped from the ground. "You… dropped… me." She said in disbelief. "Why?" She demanded.

"Cause you've got about 45 minutes to get ready." Jean pointed to the clock.

Mary glared, and crossed her arm before turning to her dresser and pulling out the day's outfit. "Jerk." She muttered going past, causing Jean to roll her eyes.

"_Yeah, just like her sister."_ The redhead thought to herself as she followed Mary out of the room and returned to the kitchen.

&&&&

Mary entered the kitchen yawning, and earning a glance from Tabitha. "If you're gonna break curfew, be prepared for the consequences." The blonde whispered in Mary's ear, as she brushed past. Mary blinked and stifled another yawn, determined to ignore Tabitha's sarcastic remark this early.

She didn't know how she was going to make it through school; she was exhausted. The trip there would probably be enough to put her back to sleep. Damn her tendency towards exhaustion. She grabbed someone's Poptart from the toaster and leaned against the doorframe, not wanting to be touched at the crowded table. She spied Xavier wheel in from another door and she smiled warmly at him. She was fond of the older man, he reminded her of the father she had always wanted. He returned the smile and made his way over to Ororo, who was busy keeping order at the table. The two talked for a moment and occasionally looked to Mary during their discussion.

Mary perked a brow. _"What's going on?"_ She thought nervously as she shifted her feet. The two-tone was known to get paranoid at times, especially when she saw that people were talking about her and didn't include her in the conversation. When they finished, the two looked to Mary again and smiled. Professor Xavier looked as if he was hiding something, and Ororo looked so happy that she might have run over and given Mary a hug if the students weren't there.

Mary narrowed her eyes and nodded in response to their stares. She exited the kitchen and was making her way to the garage when a doorbell was heard over the commotion in the kitchen. She debated getting it; it wasn't like she was expecting anyone or anything. Someone else could get it. No one made a leave for the kitchen, and Mary paused. **_"Mary, would you mind getting the door since we're preoccupied in here?" _**Xavier asked telepathically, causing Mary to shudder again. She hated that feeling. She did notice something different though this time, there seemed to be cheer in his thoughts.

Shrugging it off, she made her way over to the door and opened it partially. "Welcome to Xavier Institute… can I help…" She paused, not believing what she saw. Mary opened and closed her mouth in shock, and wasn't able to regain her senses until she was tackled and nearly dragged to the ground.

"MARY!" Amy Forest screamed as she flung herself on her best friend. If not for Mary's Danger Room sessions that trained her to steel herself for an attack, they would have both gone to the ground.

"Amy!" Mary exclaimed after a moment, returning the hug strongly. She felt a wave of comfort wash over. It had been a long time since she had seen her best friend, and upon contact, memories of home flooded her senses. _Contact_. Mary pulled away suddenly, afraid of the danger.

"What is it?" Amy questioned, noticing the swift gesture.

"Just… I'm not used to touch…" Mary didn't feel like explaining right now. Instead, she overcame her instincts and made sure she was fully covered before embracing her friend once again. "I've missed you." She whispered into her friend's dark hair.

"I've missed you too, baby." Amy whispered back, squeezing her friend again. She opened her eyes and through a few tears of happiness saw blurry figures. Pulling back, she wiped her eyes and stared at the group that had crowded in the doorway. "Umm…" She greeted, tucking her long hair behind her ears.

"Ms. Forest, I'm glad your plane arrived safely." Charles Xavier greeted, parting the sea of students. Mary spun around, giving Xavier and Amy a paranoid stare.

"Me too, Mr. Xavier. Thank you so sooo much for inviting me up here." Amy said gratefully. She looked to Mary and realized her friend knew nothing. "I called up here once, and he answered the phone. We chatted a bit and he offered to come up here and visit for a few days. He just said I had to get the Ok from my parents. So… here I am! Happy to see me?" She summarized quickly, not wanting to get into boring details of being heckled at school for coming to visit.

"Definitely happy, but why didn't you tell me?" Mary replied, glancing at Xavier again.

"I thought it would be a pleasant surprise." Charles explained with a wry smile. Mary didn't know what to say, she was happy. Too happy for words. "I suppose you would like to take the day to show Ms. Forest around? It should be a day for you two to catch up." He offered, plainly stating she didn't have to attend school.

"What? Just cause her friend shows up she gets to skip school? Not fair! If I had known that I woulda called tons of people up here!" Bobby complained.

"Yeah, but would they have wanted to visit?" Ray laughed, dodging a snowball from his friend. After a small introduction, the children rushed to grab their things, and headed for the door.

"See y'all!" Mary waved goodbye as they trudged out the door. Only Rogue hung back momentarily.

"It's nice seeing yah again, Amy." She said coolly.

"You too…Marie? Wasn't it?" Amy inquired. Rogue grimaced at the name.

"Yeah… call me Rogue though… Ah'm not really fond of Marie." She corrected, glancing at the clock and hoping her ride hadn't left yet. Amy nodded with a grin, and Rogue headed for the door. "Ah'll see yah later, Mary. Don't be gettin' intah any trouble." She warned playfully as she grabbed her coat and exited.

"Dude, they certainly crack down hard on you up here don't they?" Amy snorted as the room fell silent.

"It's her job, I guess you could say." Mary shrugged.

"Job?" Amy inquired. Mary stared at her pointedly, and gasped when she realized Amy knew nothing of her family. Mary didn't want to tell her over the phone, but instead wanted to explain it in person. She had kept putting if off in the conversations she had with her friend and had totally forgotten about it.

"Amy…we need to talk." Mary sighed, slinging her arm onto the other girl's shoulder and steering her towards the room she shared with Tabitha.

"O…k…" Amy replied, wondering what was about to be revealed to her. Finding out her best friend was a mutant, and being flown up here to see her was enough excitement for one lifetime. What Mary was about to tell her would shock her even further, if it were possible.

&&&&

Pietro's cold eyes scanned the parking lot, searching for Mary. He saw both cars full of X-Men pull into spaces and the children file out, but no Mary. _"What the hell?"_ He raged. Where was she? Today was the day he was going to initial the final stage of his plan. She wasn't here. WHY WASN'T SHE HERE? His thoughts raced as he saw them file into the building. Cursing to himself, he sped back to his locker and threw Mary's jacket into it and then slammed the door. He was just going to have to wait until he could catch Rogue and Mary later. His plan wouldn't succeed without them both present. "Dammit." He muttered to himself before speeding off to Bayville. He had no reason to be at school today. His plan had been delayed, and he didn't care anymore to attend classes today.


	21. Chapter 21

**Look! I'm not dead! Wooo! I'm just distracted by life. And Pixie sticks… Mostly Pixie Sticks! Heh… I'm not too fond of this chapter… I dunno… It just seems kinda pointless… Oh well…**

**Can't forget my reviewers!**

**Howlerdrode: **World conquerors have to have their minions brainwashed! It's the comic book way! And yeah, viruses are gone! I got a new computer. Only problem with is that the CD drive won't read a lot of my hardware files like my pictures or music. So… Lil is unhappy ;.;

**Multifan**: Heh, hopefully my viruses will stay gone on this computer, and I have McAfee on my computer which I hear is pretty good. I had Ad-Aware and Norton on my old one, but I think this works a lot better. And yeah! I finished Mayhem, but I've been suffering from like… severe ADHD or something lately. I've been up and around lately a lot. I'm working on Daytripper now! But yeah, Mary is definitely walking into a trap… in fact… next chapter! Hehe… although it is sad how much this is going to hurt her emotionally.

I'm glad I got Magneto right. He's a hard character to do . Thanks for the assurance I was writing him well enough! And muahahaha… Pietro's plan is in the next chapter.

**Agent-G: **DUDE! Heh, Hi! Lol I'm still wondering about how I'm going to write out the sequel… but I'm definitely keeping this story all together and not splitting it up. But anywho, I needed the sister-sister scene in the last chapter to help balance out the other sister-sister scene that's coming up (innocent look). And I'm glad I brought Amy back… it's the calm before the storm. Also, yeah… if I think it out it has been about two weeks since Mary got there… it seems longer to me o.O

**Brandy Lebeau: **Hola chica. I dunno if there's much humor in this chapter (I forget… it's 2 AM right now o.O) But hey! I updated! Lol.

**Fireinu: **Thanks for the compliments! Lol… well, here's Amy's response to it all!

**Chapter 21**

There was an awkward silence in Mary's room. Amy had just been told of Rogue, and of Kurt. The girl stared at Mary with narrowed eyes, as if trying to tell if her friend was lying. It was putting the two-tone on edge; she absolutely hated being stared at. She picked at her gloves and looked away, trying to shield the perusal by blocking it with her hair.

"You… have… a sister." Amy finally repeated what Mary had stated moments ago. "And you couldn't tell me this earlier?" She inquired, somewhat hurt.

"I…" Mary didn't know how to respond. "I wanted to tell you… but not over the phone. I wanted you two to be able to meet in person… I'm sorry. I should have told you as soon as I could… are you mad?" She explained, feeling like an idiot.

"Yeah… a little… but I'll get over it." Amy replied truthfully, nodding her head. "If I had known this sooner, I woulda taken a better look of her at the door before she left! I didn't see Kurt though… but I woulda taken a better look of him if I had known… and if he were there. And yeah." She finished awkwardly.

Mary grinned. Good old Amy. "Well… they'll be back in a couple of hours. And until then, we're free to do just about anything. What are you up for?" She asked.

"I dunno… what's here in Bayville? A tour of it all would be nice." The other girl guessed.

Mary's brows furrowed. Could she show Amy everything here? She trusted this girl with her life, but what would Xavier say? "Umm… I would have to get you special clearance to see everything here… but anything else would be cool." She explained.

"Well get on with it!" Amy demanded playfully. "I wanna see this oh so exciting Danger Room you've told me about."

Mary smiled worriedly. She didn't know if Xavier would give them permission. "Ok…umm… hang on." The two-tone told her as she stood and walked towards the door. "I'll go ask." She stepped outside her door and closed it, leaning against the cool wood. It would be pointless to go all the way downstairs when she could just try and contact him telepathically. **_"Umm… Professor?"_** She thought loudly, hoping to get his attention.

"**_Yes, Mary?"_** Charles Xavier replied after a moment.

"**_I was wondering if I could show Amy the lower levels? She's kinda intrigued by them…" _**Mary asked hopefully. There was a long pause before Xavier replied.

"**_I'm not sure. She could inadvertently activate something and render you two in trouble." _**He explained. Well… at least the man was honest about everything. Mary's face fell, and he sensed it. Xavier regretted his decision, for he could tell Amy meant no ill will against anyone, and was indeed just curious. Still, he didn't want to put any of them at risk. He sighed to himself, and before Mary opened the door to tell her friend there would be no tour, he grabbed her attention. **_"If, though, you had supervision, I suppose a tour would be acceptable."_** He agreed. He could feel her smile, and that made him happy.

"**_Thank you Professor!" _**Mary thanked before returning to her room. Xavier smiled to himself and mentally contacted Ororo to meet the girls at the elevator for the tour. "Oook! We have clearance. Ms. Ororo will have to go with us, but she's cool." Mary explained as she walked back into her room.

"Yes!" Amy cheered, standing and making her way over. "That's my girl… you've always had some way or another of getting what you want." She joked.

"Psh. Not here. Not with these insane kids who demand left and right. Not with Logan." Mary snorted in response as she grabbed Amy's arm and led her down the stairs and towards the elevator.

&&&&

"Dude." Amy said in awe as she stared at the computer room located above the Danger Room. "This is amazing."

"It's a pain in the butt when Logan runs the sessions…" Mary replied with a snort.

"Who designs all the programs?" She asked, switching into techie mode. She was known to do this once advanced technology made its way into her presence.

"We all do." Ororo spoke up from behind. "Well, Logan, Hank, Professor Xavier and I do. The Danger Room itself is learning technology, and creates new sessions from analyzed data. It concentrates on discovered weaknesses, and forces the mutant to work on them." She explained, walking up to the computer and punching in a code. The computer screen blinked to life, showing a headshot of Mary and giving data.

"Mary has only run a few short early sessions, and only one main one since her arrival. Nearly every time, she has been foiled by a simple mistake: smugness." Ororo said with a small smile at Mary's blush. "She feels the session has been defeated, and she lets her senses dull. She's usually taken off guard, and the computer has realized this and tries to catch her with it." The instructor informed.

Mary crossed her arms while Amy laughed. She couldn't help her cockiness, but now that Ororo pointed it out to her she set her mind on working on it. She didn't want to fail every time just because of that one fault. She had many other faults the computer could focus on. "Yeah… well… it's hard without an active power." Mary muttered.

"Yeah, well, can't you steal some and go after it all then? Who knows, maybe you'd get some common sense." Amy chuckled again. Mary glared at her for a moment, but sighed. Amy didn't know what happened when absorption took place… Mary would have to explain later and not in front of Ororo.

"Right, alright girls." Ororo spoke up, noticing the strained silence. "Shall we move on? Amy, if you enjoy all this technology, I'm sure you would enjoy the hangar. Only the Blackbird is there at the moment, but it's enough to keep you preoccupied." She smiled before leading them out of the control room.

&&&&

"Dude, and you actually get to live there and use all those things and it's totally amazing!" Amy commented for the umpteenth time at the restaurant they were eating lunch at.

"Technically, I shouldn't touch them. I could make them explode or something. You know my technology skills." Mary responded with a snort.

"Ok, then I need to come up here and live. **I** would get to tinker with them and it would rock like whoa." Amy corrected. Mary shook her head and took another bite of her salad.

"So, this is Bayville." Amy spoke up after a moment, staring down Main Street that was visible from their seat.

"Yeah, whole bunches of fun and whatnot. Full of discriminate jerks." Mary replied bitterly.

Amy stared at her pitifully. She knew she had gotten mocked for clinging so tightly to her mutant friend by some people, but in the end she was still considered normal. Mary, on the other hand, would be discrimated against because she was a mutant. Nothing would change that. "How bad is it up here?" She asked.

"It can be pretty bad at school if they know you are. I told you about the party I went to right? Since then… people haven't treated me the same. It kinda showed where my loyalties should lay though; I guess that's something good that came outta it." She shrugged in response.

"Yeah…" Amy agreed softly, not really knowing how to reply. "And you got a big sister out of the whole powers deal. How cool is that?" She tried to lighten the mood. It caused Mary to smile faintly, and that was at least a start.

"Pretty cool. Even though you were technically more like a sister first." She pointed out.

"Hells yeah I was, but I'm younger than you. So I'm more of the pesky but adorable little sister." Amy replied, causing Mary to grin widely. That was more like it. They continued chatting until they finished, then Mary caught the tab and they began walking down Main Street.

"So… how are things at home?" Mary asked cautiously; she was curious about her parents.

"Blah. It's boring. Everything's still the same." Amy shrugged.

"Even my mom and dad?" Mary mentioned.

"Actually… I don't see them very much anymore. Your dad comes into my dad's restaurant every once in a while, but there's no small talk between them. You know my parents aren't exactly fond of yours." Amy replied hesitantly. "Haven't you heard from them?" She asked.

"Nope." The two-tone replied nonchalantly. Amy scowled; she knew Mary's parents weren't the best people in the world, but she would have assumed that they would have at least kept in touch with their only child.

"Hey, well screw them. This family you have up here is ten times as better." Amy pointed out as she looped her arm through Mary's. "Gosh… it's freaking cold. The north is horrible in December… let's go back." Amy shivered. Mary laughed, she was wearing so many layers she couldn't feel the biting cold, but poor Amy was shaking in her boots.

"Alright, we can watch a movie or something until everyone gets back." Mary agreed, turning them around and starting back for the Institute.

&&&&

"Crank it up, Bobby!" Amy hollered as music blared in the recroom. Amy and Mary had been shocked when everyone got home that afternoon with decorations in tow. Apparently, the X-Men had decreed tonight a celebration due to Amy's visit. And, well, that suited the party girls just fine.

Rogue watched with mild amusement as the recroom was partially destroyed by the party. She was sitting on the steps, not too keen on becoming a wild child tonight. She saw Amy walk towards the kitchen and followed. "So." Rogue greeted as Amy rummaged in the freezer for ice.

"Yo…Rogue." Amy greeted in response. "I learned something about you today." She said with a wide smile. "Never knew Mary had a sister… you taking care of her for me?" The last part was serious, and Rogue saw a glint of suspicion in her eyes.

"Of course." Rogue assured her, not appreciating the questioning stare. "Enjoying your stay?" She asked, trying to change the subject.

"Sure am… although it's freakishly cold up here." Amy shuddered, her tone cheerful again.

"I've been up here so long… I can't remember how warm Southern winters are compared to this." Rogue smiled faintly in remembrance of Mississippi.

"Warmer than this. Way warmer. Like… teen degrees. Not single or negative digits." Amy pointed out, causing Rogue to chuckle. Amy was a sweet kid… a little dramatic, but sweet.

"So, how long are yah staying?"

"Until Sunday… my parents and I are traveling to Georgia to see other family for Christmas… are you going anywhere for the holidays?" Amy inquired, setting her glass down.

Rogue shook her head and glanced back into the recroom and stared at her little sister. "Ah don't suppose Mary will go visit her parents, will she?" She stated, the tone in her voice making it a statement, not a question.

"Not a chance. They wouldn't have her anyway. Those asses…" Amy raged.

Rogue smiled, so it seemed they both hated the Dawson's with a passion. "Ah think we'll get along just fine, Amy." She smiled as she gestured for them to head back to the party. Truthfully, she had been wary of the girl. She didn't know if Amy would still treat Mary as a friend once her powers had manifested, but Rogue saw that the girl loved her little sister dearly and that brought her comfort.

As they rejoined the group, a wave of happiness washed over Rogue. Her sister had her best friend, and she was settling in quite well with everything at the Institute. Mary was safe, and more importantly… she was happy. Tonight, Rogue didn't have to worry about Pietro, school or responsibilities. Tonight was her night off to be a kid.

((OOC: No, I didn't like this chapter --))


	22. Chapter 22

Mary walked happily into Bayville High school that Monday morning. Her weekend had gone perfectly. It had snowed Saturday morning, and there was a massive snowball fight between everyone at the Institute. Mary had been adamant about being on Tabitha's team, and Amy had discovered why. Tabitha had put her bombs in the snow and hurled them at snow forts, effectively destroying them. They had done pretty well… until Bobby had attacked. The trio was buried up to their waists in snow.

As it turned out, Rogue and Amy had a lot in common and had become thick as thieves. Amy made a point to tell Rogue every embarrassing story she knew about Mary and let her in on her habits and whatnot. The sisters had seen Amy off to the airport, and before she left they made plans of when they should meet again.

After this weekend, Mary felt she could handle 3 more days of school… after that it was Christmas Break! She elbowed her way through the crowd and stopped at her locker to unpack and repack books, unaware of the demon spying on her.

"_FINALLY. God, I thought I was going to have to haul this jacket around with me forever. Least she's here. Now, just gotta wait on the sister…" _Pietro thought to himself, leaning indiscreetly against a pillar with Mary's camouflage jacket lying across his arms. She had left it in Lance's jeep a few nights ago, and he finally had the chance to get it back with her and finish this mission once and for all. He could have cried in joy when he saw the older sister walk up and converse with the younger. Smiling wickedly, he sped down the hall and halted within inches of Mary.

"Mary! I haven't seen you in a while. I just wanted to give you your jacket… you left it in my car a few nights ago." He greeted cheerfully, pretending not to see Rogue. He saw the wave of dread wash over the two-tone's face, and he knew everything was about to fall into place.

"Mary." Rogue said coldly. She didn't have to say anymore; the one word echoed loudly her confusion and anger. She had swapped into angry big sister mode, and her jets weren't about to cool anytime soon. "What?" She demanded softly, terrifying Mary with the tone.

"Thanks, Pietro… Ah'll see yah later." Mary thanked quickly, her southern accent becoming more predominated with her new anxiety. She took her jacket from the speed demon's arms and shoved it in her locker. Pietro looked between the two girls and gave Mary a questioning stare. "Ah'll explain later… just go." She ordered painfully. Pietro nodded and sped off down the hallway, eager to find a hiding spot to watch the war erupt.

"Mary." Rogue repeated, her cold gray eyes not leaving Mary's nervous brown ones.

"Ah…" She didn't know what to tell her sister. Mary had lied and gone out with a Brotherhood member without permission. Even worse, it was a Brotherhood member Rogue had made clear she loathed. "Please don't get mad… please." Mary begged, stepping back. "Ah… Ah just went tah tha film festival with him a few nights ago… he gave me a ride home… Ah left mah jacket in his car." She explained softly, her voice shaking. She saw her sister was about to explode, so Mary took the opportunity to speak again. "Please, Rogue… he was nothing but a gentleman. He didn't do anything tah me, he even rushed me home when curfew came…" She assured her sister. Mary was terrified; the last thing she wanted was to anger her sister. She had seen Rogue's temper, and it was the last thing she wanted to experience.

"Mary." Rogue repeated again and suddenly reached up and slammed Mary's locker, causing the younger girl to cry out in surprise. She didn't care right now. Mary was in deep trouble. "What were yah thinking?" The older girl demanded. She didn't give her sister time to answer. "Yah **lied** tah us and then went off with **him**. Do yah know what could have happened? There could have been an accident, he could have tried tah hurt yah, he could have-"

"Why would he want to hurt me, Marie?" Mary demanded, and Rogue was taken aback; Mary had never used her real name… Rogue didn't like her saying it like that, the tone cut into her deeply. Her brown eyes were watering, tears threatening to spill down her cheeks.

"Because, Mary, it's what he does. He's a monster." Rogue hissed angrily, crossing her arms and staring into Mary's eyes.

"He's not a monster." Mary whispered. "People change. You did! You used to be with them. Look at you now…"

"Some people never change despite how much yah want them too. Like father, like son." Rogue snapped back defensively, tears forming in the corner of her own eyes.

"That doesn't apply to everything. How would you feel if I said 'like mother, like daughter'?" Mary argued, taking pleasure in grating her sister's feelings. Rogue had the right to be upset, of course, but she was wrong. Pietro was a gentleman, and she was sure that he wouldn't hurt her. What she saying wasn't fair.

"That's two totally different things." Rogue growled, quick to take offense at being compared to Mystique.

"How do you know Pietro and his father aren't just like you two then?" Mary said, her voice pitching. Before Rogue could respond, she turned and ran down the halls, her small figure disappearing quickly in the crowd.

Rogue fought the urge to drag her little sister back, and clenched her fists. That wasn't fair. How could Mary do this? How could her little sister lie to them all to go out with _him_? Rogue knew Pietro shouldn't be trusted. She knew he would cause something to happen, and now it had. He had caused a rift between her and the person she loved most… and she didn't know how to fix it. "Damn you both." She raged, slamming her fist into Mary's locker, attracting attention from anyone in the hallway.

"Rogue?" Kitty asked hesitantly from behind. She had been watching the sisters argue from her locker and had decided not to intrude. It was none of her business… but her best friend's feelings were. "Like… what's going on?" She asked cautiously, stepping up to her friend's side and placing a hand on Rogue's arm. The look on her face was concerning; it was a mask of anger, pain and confusion all combined into one. Tears were in her eyes and she stared at her sister's still retreating form.

"Mary lied to us. She lied to me. She went behind our backs… with Pietro." She replied quietly, jerking her arm away and storming to class, leaving Kitty staring in confusion.

"_She wouldn't… not Mary. Like, oh man… this is gonna be bad tonight…"_ The brunette thought worriedly as she went to first period, desperate to find other housemates in order to warn them of the two-tones on a war path.

&&&&

Mary sprinted down the hallways, frantic to find Pietro. She needed to talk to him desperately. She spied him turning the corner and picked up speed, ducking under arms and shoving people out of her way. "Pietro!" She called out. She saw him turn and she ran to him, plowing into him and beginning to weep. "Pietro… she's so mad at me…" Mary said between sobs.

"_Yes!"_ The mutant thought to himself. "Mary… I'm so sorry. I forgot Rogue didn't know… I was just so happy to see you today… I'm so sorry Mary." He said, feigning concern and wrapping his arms around her figure.

"I'm in so much trouble… and I said such horrible things. I just couldn't stand some of the things she said about you… oh God… I'm in so much trouble…" Mary's thoughts were going a mile a minute and she wondered if she was making any sense.

"It's Ok, Mary." Pietro assured, petting her head. "Hey… we won't stay here today. You can't handle classes now… let me get my coat and we'll go somewhere… the mall… my house… anywhere but here." He promised her, getting a small nod in return as she released him. He turned and sped for his locker, grabbing his jacket and whipping out his cell phone. "Magneto. Send one of you metal orbs to the Brotherhood house. I've got the girl." He said quickly into the phone once his father answered, not bothering to wait for a reply. He hung up and sped back to the two-tone, who had her arms crossed and was leaning against the wall.

"Ok… come on, Mary, let's go." He said, 'concerned' as he scooped her into his arms and they sped out of the building. Seconds later they were standing on the porch of the Brotherhood house, with Mary once again buried in his jacket and crying her eyes out. He scowled, wishing the orb would get here soon so he could get rid of this pest. He barely listened when she explained what had happened, but nodded as if he did and understood. "It's Ok, just calm down… everything will be fine. I promise." He assured her. Minutes passed, and at last he saw a glint of metal in the sky.

Thinking quickly, he spun the two-tone around and wrapped one arm around her neck and the other around her body. He began to flex his arm around her throat, and she began to squirm. In this position she couldn't cry out because he was restricting her vocal cords, but he could tell she was terrified nonetheless. She fought for a few moments before he felt her slowing down. He smiled to himself as the hold took effect and she passed out entirely, falling limply into his arms. He picked her up into a carrying position and stared at her demeanor. Even unconscious, she still appeared terrified. Pietro smiled and dashed out onto the front lawn where the orb was.

It opened, and he tossed her inside carelessly. He heard her moan, and he quickly punched his father's number and assured him that Mary was in his hands and he could bring her home. The semicircle formed into a giant metal sphere again, and it rose into the air and shot off in the direction of Magneto's compound.

"That's that." Pietro smiled, wiping his hands together proudly. "Job well done, Pietro." He congratulated himself before speeding downtown to celebrate.

Inside Magneto's transportation globe, Mary was enjoying sweet oblivion. Once she awakened though, her life would become a living hell.

**((Dun dun duuuuun))**


	23. Chapter 23

**Wooo… I hate summer. It's boring. And there are mosquitoes. Damn Southern humidity too. And hey! A guy named Squirrel came and cut down some of our trees. That has nothing to do with the story…but it amuses me so XD. **

**P.S- Bungee jumping out of trees is insanely fun XD.**

**Multifan: **I didn't necessarily forget Kurt… I just… totally forgot about him . Sorry! Umm… In Daytripper. I'm to the part where the FoH attacked the Seftons… so not too far. And… I think if Rogue ever catches Pietro, she'll kill him lol.

**Agent-G: **Rogue's just calling him a monster cause because of what she's seen him do, from living with him, and her way of thinking… add them all up and sure, she may be getting a little overboard, but it's how she's come to think of him.

**Brandy Lebeau: **Yes! Ahh! There always has to be a badguy in a story. Now, its Pietro… and Magneto. But still! Pietro had to be the badguy! Hehe.

**Quillian: **Woo! You're welcome! Glad you enjoy the story!

**Howlerdrode: **Lol Mary realized too late that Rogue knew best. And trust me, you'll love Rogue's reaction to the situation… as soon as I can think of what to write I'll get it posted hehe!

**Fireinu: **Psh… I don't feel sorry for Pietro either XD.

**Chapter 23**

Mary was awoken by a sudden jolt. She whimpered and opened her eyes, not able to comprehend anything in the lack of lighting and her wooziness. _"Where… what? What happened…"_ She rubbed her sore throat and tried to recall the last thing that had happened. It was difficult with her psyches screaming, and she fought with them to silence. It took a few moments, but bits and pieces began to come back to her… the fight with Rogue. Pietro… "No… Not Pietro… God no." She begged herself as she remembered what he did to her. He had done this to her… he had put her here. Rogue was right… she had been right all along. _"But… where is here?" _She thought to herself, looking around her prison. It was smooth metal and there didn't appear to be a hatch or any means of escape. She heard heavy footsteps and began to panic. Not wanting to risk being abused for whatever reason, Mary decided to play possum. She figured her captors, whoever they were, wouldn't beat an unconscious child…hopefully. She closed her eyes again and seconds later, the sphere opened up and she heard a feral growl.

Mary would have cried out if she wasn't frozen in terror, but she kept her mouth shut as she was lifted carelessly and slung over a man's shoulder. Taking a chance, she opened one eye and spied a cold stainless steel floor. She was riding aloft a blonde man's shoulders, but she couldn't see his face. Mary knew he was a rough character though by the shape of his tattered clothes. She didn't know where he was carrying her… but she was sure she didn't want to go. _"If… if I absorb him… maybe I can get an idea where I am… maybe I can get out…" _She thought easily, although she was sure her body wouldn't cooperate because of her terror.

Taking a chance, she whipped her gloves off quickly and grabbed a hold of the man's arm. She heard him howl, and her mind was immediately attacked by crude and terrifying images. She closed her eyes as they burned themselves into her mind. Mary saw woods, a man… Logan! Her captor was stalking him… they were fighting. The young mutant was snapped out of her daze when she was hurled across the room. She opened her eyes to see a man… a monster… something. He was feral like Logan, but ten times as frightening. And from the looks of it, he was out for blood. Fortunately for Mary, he was weakened from being absorbed and was wobbling towards her menacingly.

The two-tone didn't stop to think, but ran. Only when she stood did she realize her shoes had been destroyed by her new clawed feet, and her hands had long nails on them as well. She let out a gasp and noticed the deepness of it… it sounded like a growl. She didn't pause though, but continued down a maze of hallways and only paused when she felt she had lost the mutant. She stared at her hands and hoped that the talons would disappear and she would return to normal, but right now that wasn't the biggest part of her worries. Mary tried searching through the memories, but they were erratic due to the man's mind frame and due to Mary's lack of concentration while absorbing. She caught glimpses of Logan and the other X-Men… but that was it. "Rogue…" She said to herself, her voice a low rumble. Would she ever see her sister again?

Pushing the negative thoughts away, she continued running. She made her way into a large room, and began to panic. How would she find her way out? She didn't absorb the right memories… She cringed as the man's… Sabertooth, she discovered, presence ravaged her mind and upset the other psyches. Mary put her head in her hands and clenched her eyes shut.

"Bonjour, petite." An amused voice called from the shadows. Mary's head snapped up, her new senses trying to locate the owner. "Big cat scared yah, non?" The voice asked again. He sounded French… no… Cajun. She heard the Southern accent in there among the French.

"Who are you? What do you want with me?" Mary snarled, spinning around, her eyes continuously searching.

"Dat be up tah Mags. Ah just do what Ah'm told." The voice explained. "And, Ah was told tah retrieve yah." He told her, walking out from the shadows. Mary growled ferociously, trying to terrify the man. Truth was, she was scared of him. She didn't know how old he was, although he looked to be about 20. Brown hair, goatee, trench coat, fingerless gloves. Mary took all that in without a problem. It was his eyes that terrified her. Red iris on black. He looked like a demon… but at least he was amused. "Yah think dat scares me, petite? Ah live wid tha big hairball. Yah're nothin'." He chuckled.

"Don't be causin' me no trouble now, come along." He ordered her, stepping forward. Mary took two steps back and looked for an exit. "Whatcha gonna do?" He laughed again. "Yah won't be gettin' past ol' Remy. Ah'm more experienced than yah." He assured her, whipping out a deck of cards.

"In poker, maybe." Mary agreed, snarling again. She was swept up by Sabertooth's anger and pride. She began to pace near the wall, not liking the feeling of being trapped.

"Yah don't want tah anger Remy, petite." He warned her, the card in his hand beginning to glow. Mary gave no response, but growled. Remy hurled the card at her feet and it exploded. Besides giving Mary a nasty shock, it through her into the wall and she fell to the ground. She tried to scramble up, but Remy had whipped out a steel staff and jammed it against her chest, effectively pinning her.

Mary saw an opening and took it. Her clawed foot shot up and pegged Remy in the groin. He cursed in French and his staff clattered to the floor. She smiled to herself as the adrenaline pumped through her body and she picked herself up and tried to run. She made it all of five feet before Remy was on her again. His staff came out of no where and cracked her in the side of her head, causing her to drop to her knees. He was behind her in an instant and had pinned her neck between his staff and her body. "Yah gone messed up, now." He whispered in her ear as pressure increased and effectively staunched her breathing.

"Don't kill her, Gambit." A voice boomed from behind them. The Cajun released her and she tried to run again, not caring who the new voice was. She wanted free. Before long, she felt something wrap around her ankles and she was lifted into the air and hung upside down. Mary was rotated to see a man in a cape and red uniform. He held his hand out, as if holding Mary in place. "Child, escape is impossible here. As long as you're wearing metal, even if it's just a scrap, you'll be in my hold." He assured her. Mary looked down…er… up at her feet and saw a thick ribbon of metal wrapped securely around each ankle.

"_Magneto…" _She realized, a wave of sick terror washing over her. He knew she had figured it out, and chuckled.

"Welcome to your new home. Over time, I'm quite sure you'll love it." Magneto greeted coldly, nodding to Gambit. The Cajun nodded, a bored look on his face, and raised his staff. The last thing Mary saw was a steel staff glinting in dim lighting as it was propelled towards her temple.

&&&&

"Hey, have y'all seen mah sister?" Rogue asked Kurt and Scott at lunch.

The two looked at each other for a moment and turned back to the two-tone girl. "Not since this morning… why?" Scott replied.

"Nothin'," Rogue lied. She didn't want Scott to know of the fight this morning yet. She needed to talk to Mary first. "Ah just needed tah talk tah her." She told them.

"We'll steer her in your direction if ve see her." Kurt smiled. Rogue thanked them and continued on, not wanting to join their company. She was still brooding. Rogue scowled at herself. She should have known. She had seen in her sister's eyes how much she like Pietro. She should have known something like this would have happened. She should have remembered that everybody would bring disappointment at one point, whether the person is family or not.

Rogue was so angry right now. Angry at Mary, angry at Pietro, and angry at herself. She shouldn't have blown up like she had. She was just… hurt. She had put her faith in her little sister, and Mary had gone behind her back and blatantly lied to her. Still, Rogue had added to the wall Mary had laid the foundation for with her outburst. She wanted to find her sister to talk. She didn't know what would happen… she just needed to find her sister.

"Tabitha?" Rogue tried to grab the girl's attention, but it proved difficult as the blonde had her eyes closed and was listening to her CD player. The two-tone scowled and whacked the younger mutant with her history book.

"Whoa, rude much! Babe, what's your problem?" Tabitha exclaimed, rubbing her head.

"Have yah seen Mary?" Rogue asked, not bothering to apologize.

"Nope, but if I had to guess she's probably avoiding you cause of that fight this morning." The blonde shrugged, causing Rogue's cheeks to redden with embarrassment and anger.

"Yah heard about that?" She asked quietly.

"Kitty was warning everyone to stay out of you guys' way cause you would both be on the warpath." Tabitha replied. "So… whatcha need her for?" She pried.

"Tah talk. If yah see her, just tell her tah find me, Ok?" Rogue asked, scooping up her bag and moving on. She was beginning to worry. Where was her sister? Surely someone from the Institute should have seen her since this morning? Maybe she went home… Maybe Mary was avoiding her. "Ah'll find her." Rogue muttered to herself, trying to put the thoughts out of her mind as she headed to class early.

&&&&

Mary groaned as she slowly came to. She first noticed that her voice wasn't a growl, and wondered how long she had been unconscious. Her head was pounding, and she instinctively reached up to massage it but found her arms were restricted. She opened her eyes and winced at the bright lighting. Mary realized she was laying on a metal slab, her arms, torso and legs pinned with metal bands. She groaned again and tried to loosen them.

"Quickly, she's come to. Do it now before she puts up her shields." She heard a cold voice order. Glancing up, she saw Magneto and another, smaller figure walking toward her. She whimpered and tried to pull herself free. "Don't fret child… the more you struggle the more it will pain you." He informed as the smaller man extended his hands and placed them on the sides of her head, right above them temple where hair covered her bare skin.

She tried to yank her head away, but the man had a firm grip on her. He glanced into her eyes for a moment and then concentrated on his hands again. Before long, his eyes began to glow and Mary began to panic. "Please… please let me go…" She begged him, earning no response. Suddenly, the pain hit her. She felt a cold presence digging through her memories. Her mind felt as if it were about to explode. Mary cried out in pain and confusion.

Magneto stood back, his arms crossed, as he watched Mastermind to his work. He surveyed his new Acolyte and made mental notes to himself. She wasn't the most prime physical specimen, but he was sure that with training she could become quite deadly. She was small, but her size would allow her to be more agile. Her main flaw he had seen so far was pride, but that didn't surprise him seeing as she was Rogue's sister. Despite the few flaws, he was happy with what she was. And soon, she would be his puppet; her memories of the X-Men would be totally distorted and she would see them in an odious manner. Memories of her sister would of course be erased, and memories of Magneto and the Acolytes would be put into a lighter view.

After what seemed an eternity, the girl's sobs quieted, and she lay still. Mastermind removed his hands and turned to Magneto. "She had an exceptionally strong attachment to her sister. It took work to shield those memories… and I was bombarded by two strong psyches… the teleporter and the psychotic blonde. I'm assuming you know who they are?" He was answered with a curt nod. "But, over time they weakened and I was able to subdue them and shove them into the farther corners of her mind. They won't escape from there. Everything else, though, went easily enough." He assured his boss.

"So, when she wakes?" Magneto asked.

"She will be loyal to you, and only you." Mastermind replied.


End file.
